The Aardvark in the Park Festival in St. Paul on Saturday, July 27, will celebrate a quirky new sculpture.

An aardvark joined the Western Sculpture Park’s 15-piece collection last month.

The work will serve as both art and a storage shed for youth workshops and other park programs. It provides 128 square feet of interior space to store art materials and workshop equipment.

SCULPTURE DESIGN

Souliyahn Keobounpheng, co-owner of design firm Silvercocoon, designed the aardvark.

Four paid team members and two adult volunteers built the structure onsite in four weeks. Some local children helped dig holes in the project’s beginning stages. Those who contributed signed their names on the top of the doorway.

“We did it for the love of building the structure,” Keobounpheng said.

The shed sculpture takes the shape of an abstracted aardvark with a blue door, gray walls and skylights.

“We think it’s a fun contribution to the St. Paul landscape,” Public Art St. Paul director Colleen Sheehy said.

AARDVARK SUPPORTERS

Western Sculpture Park is a partnership between Public Art St. Paul and the City of St. Paul’s Parks Department. They work together to accommodate large-scale pieces.

The local tax-funded St. Paul Cultural STAR, along with the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, paid for the aardvark. Related Articles Gallery takes art outside with light sculpture on Rice Street

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For the last two decades, Western Sculpture Park has curated outdoor sculptures made by local, national and international artists. They also host ongoing programs, such as the youth workshop eARTh Lab.

“(The aardvark) really feels like a part of the community,” Sheehy said.

IF YOU GO

The Aardvark in the Park Festival will be held from noon to 4 p.m. July 27 at Western Sculpture Park, 387 Marion St.

More information can be found at: http://publicartstpaul.org/aardvark-in-the-park-festival-july-27th-2019.