Flights of Learning Sculpture
The "Flights of Learning" 800-pound, seven-and-a-half-foot-tall sculpture is at the front exterior entrance of the Ludington Public Library. The metal sculpture by Utah artist Bryce Pettit took about six months to complete. It was purchased for the downtown Ludington library by John and Anita Wilson. The sculpture came just after the opening of the new wing addition added to the back of the existing library. The new wing is called the Keith Wilson Children’s Center and is named after John Wilson's father.
The metal sculpture symbolizes the mission of the library. The metal book open at the base of the statue says it all. It explains that parents and members of the community shoulder the responsibility to better the world which can be done in a child's learning. The open book represents a gateway to learning, while the birds represent the knowledge learned through the books. Once the knowledge is released it soars to new heights that enrich and enlighten our lives. The knowledge released through the "Flights of Learning" is an opportunity to new heights of freedom. The birds show different areas of learning and knowledge. The owl represents the knowledge in sciences and mathematics, the falcon represents the knowledge in history, the jay represents the knowledge in literature, the meadowlark represents the knowledge in music, the hummingbird represents the knowledge in fantasy, and the tern represents the knowledge in arts. The artist used his 11 year old daughter as a model for the metal sculpture.
The "Flights of Learning" sculpture was dedicated June 29, 2012. There were dozens of people in attendance. John and Anita Wilson were presented with a scale model of the sculpture they had donated to the library. The "Flights of Learning" sculpture at the library is a continuation of the sculpture trail that started with nine sculptures at Waterfront Park near downtown Ludington, Michigan.
Read more about this topic: Ludington Public Library, Later History
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“Now cracks a noble heart. Good night, sweet prince,
And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“Franklin said once in one of his inspired flights of malignity—
Early to bed and early to rise
Make a man healthy and wealth and wise.
As if it were any object to a boy to be healthy and wealthy and wise on such terms.”
—Mark Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] (1835–1910)
“Strange as it may seem, no amount of learning can cure stupidity, and formal education positively fortifies it.”
—Stephen Vizinczey (b. 1933)
“You should go to picture-galleries and museums of sculpture to be acted upon, and not to express or try to form your own perfectly futile opinion. It makes no difference to you or the world what you may think of any work of art. That is not the question; the point is how it affects you. The picture is the judge of your capacity, not you of its excellence; the world has long ago passed its judgment upon it, and now it is for the work to estimate you.”
—Anna C. Brackett (1836–1911)