About this Sculpture
- Artist: Cynthia McKean
- Medium: Painted Steel
- Size: 16" x 170"
Seagulls
About the Artist
Cynthia McKean grew up in the wide-open landscapes of Montana and Wyoming, where vivid colors and dramatic weather helped shape her artistic sensibilities. After earning degrees in biology and architecture, she moved to Holland, Michigan, and found herself working in a welding shop. There, she discovered a deep connection to steel and began creating sculptures that are big and small, bold, colorful, and abstract.
“I think in terms of cutting through space or blocking space, and what the results might be,” she explains. “My sculptures may lean towards Mother Nature and complement her… the natural and built environments—how they might interact.”
Seagulls are a familiar and important part of our local environment. Watch their flight patterns, and you’ll learn something about the weather around where you’re standing. The rougher the weather on the shore of Lake Michigan, the farther upstream the gulls fly. Seagulls is perfectly placed, near the water—the birds’ favorite spot. Glance in the opposite direction, and you’ll see the edge of their inland retreat for when the storms roll in.
Location
3099 Lakeshore Dr., Douglas, MI 49406
Experience this Sculpture
Walk around the sculpture.
What do you see?
Start at the bottom and slowly look up.
The lower part is a pole, solid and strong to support what rises above and encircles the column. Some of the abstract forms are open or “negative” shapes—spaces cut through the metal.
Slowly move your eyes upward.
Do you notice how those negative shapes get bigger?
They begin to emerge, suggesting seagulls with curved wings in flight.
Take one last walk around.
Follow the transformation from abstract shapes to realistic ones.
From solid ground to open sky, Seagulls captures a sense of lift and motion, like flying upwards!
