A SOARING NEW SCULPTURE. Check out the new "Eddies" sculpture, which was installed on May 29 as a grand finale to this year's Creative Economy Month in downtown Eau Claire.

As a culmination of Creative Economy Month in Eau Claire, the Eau Claire Public Arts Council and Downtown Eau Claire, Inc. hosted a dedication ceremony for the new "Eddies" sculpture, offering local families and fellow creatives the opportunity to take a peek at the soaring new sculpture, Mayo Clinic Health System's new Healing Arts mural, a colorful new Kubb project, and also enjoy local music and refreshing ice cream from Ramone's Ice Cream Parlor. 

'EDDIES' SCULPTURE INSTALLATION 

Have you noticed the swirling new addition to Haymarket Plaza? That's a new "Eddies" sculpture, created by San Francisco-based sculptor, Michael Szabo. This 16-foot art piece is a permanent addition to downtown Eau Claire and was a key part of Saturday's ceremony. 

MAYO CLINIC HEALING ARTS MURAL 

Mayo Clinic Health System also unveiled a new mural – which stretches about 45 feet with rotating sections – that was on display earlier this spring at Mayo's Luther Campus in Eau Claire. It comprises either a single stand, or 15 stands (with 135 panels) as a grand display. The project involves over 250 local people. 

Common threads of the project include hope and resilience, according to participating artists.

Learn more about the endeavor here. 

COLORFUL NEW WAY TO PLAY KUBB 

The Eau Claire Public Arts Council recently partnered with Visit Eau Claire and local high school art teachers to create 24 colorful new kubb sets. Students from Altoona, Chippewa Falls, Memorial, and North high schools painted and designed these unique sets to donate to area hotels so they can be available for free checkout for visitors to Eau Claire. 

“Being able to infuse art into the community through unconventional, yet approachable ways is of critical importance to the ECPAC," said Sara Larsen, communications and marketing chair of the Eau Claire Public Arts Council in a press release from Visit Eau Claire. “This specific project now allows for sport and recreation to be a vehicle for art to reach the community and will hopefully inspire more creative thinking about how to leverage unique partnerships between seemingly unlikely organizations that share common goals.”