Powell sculptor’s work heading to Colorado park

Posted 6/4/20

Any day now, Jim Marsico and his wife Bernie will hop in his truck and head to Colorado with a 700-pound bighorn ram in tow.

Marsico’s bronze sculpture, titled “Mountain …

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Powell sculptor’s work heading to Colorado park

Posted

Any day now, Jim Marsico and his wife Bernie will hop in his truck and head to Colorado with a 700-pound bighorn ram in tow.

Marsico’s bronze sculpture, titled “Mountain Royalty,” is bound for the famed Benson Sculpture Garden in Loveland, where his work will join roughly 170 other pieces from some of the world’s most talented sculptors.

“To say that I am excited and VERY thankful for this honor is a big understatement,” said Marsico, who owns Mountain Valley Artistry in Powell.

The sprawling garden in Loveland has been recognized as both “one of the 20 must-see contemporary art sites across the USA” and “one of the 200 most important modern and contemporary art sites around the world,” according to the park’s website.

The site plays host to an annual Sculpture in the Park Show and Sale, which typically features 2,000 pieces from 160 artists while drawing in 15,000 to 20,000 art lovers and collectors; more than $1.5 million worth of sales were recorded at the event in 2019. Some of the sale proceeds are used to purchase new works for the Benson Sculpture Garden — and this year, Marsico’s “Mountain Royalty” was one of the pieces picked by a committee of artists.

While this is his first piece in Loveland, Marsico’s work can already be found around the world. This bronze — cast at Caleco Foundry in Cody — is the third in an edition of 20; the other two rams grace high schools in Marshfield, Massachusetts, and Dubuque, Iowa.

Marsico often delivers his work personally. In preparation for the trip from his Powell studio down south, the taxidermist and sculptor bolted the bronze bighorn to his trailer and strapped it down.

While a long road trip with a monument might seem intimidating, “the hardest part is keeping it cleaned up and stuff,” he said. “Bronze is pretty indestructible.”

In fact, he generally enjoys traveling with a sculpture in tow.

“It’s a lot of fun because people give you the high five and the thumbs up all around the route, everywhere you stop for gas … people talk to you,” Marsico said.

“Mountain Royalty” is scheduled for a July 11 dedication at the Benson Sculpture Garden.

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