City Of Fargo: Community Celebratory Event To Be Held To Unveil Dynamic Illumination On 'The Spirit Of The Sandbagger' Sculpture

Fargo ND

01 June, 2022

2:09 PM

Description

Press release from the City of Fargo: 05/27/2022 Beginning at 9:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 31, The City of Fargo and the Fargo Lions Club will be hosting a celebratory event along the Red River in Downtown Fargo (2nd Street and 1st Avenue North) to unveil the new dynamic lighting system illuminating "The Spirit of the Sandbagger" sculpture archway. Parking will be available in the lot to the south of City Hall. The official lighting of the dual-sided work of art will occur at the conclusion of the speaking portion of the event (anticipated at approximately 10 p.m.). In mid-September 2021, the Fargo Lions Club gifted the "The Spirit of the Sandbagger" monument to The City of Fargo in honor of the Club's 100th year of service to the community. At the ribbon cutting event, it was announced that dynamic lighting would be incorporated into the site in 2022. Over the last several months, the state-of-the-art lighting system was procured, designed, installed and programmed through the collaborative work of Sun Electric (Fargo), Jill Eggl Lighting Design Studio (Fargo) and Gopher Stage Lighting (GSL) of Minneapolis, MN. GSL is a national leader in impactful lighting solutions, with a portfolio of successfully illuminating landmark projects such as US Bank Stadium, Fargo City Hall, Target Center, the Science Museum of Minnesota and the FARGODOME. Through the utilization of existing infrastructure powering City Hall's dynamic exterior illuminations, streamlined operations and cost efficiencies were maximized. The system will feature nearly 100 different lighting shows and substantially complement the emerging Fargo riverfront. Educational and donor recognition plaques have been installed on site to showcase the intrinsic meaning of the monument by highlighting the perseverance, diligence and bravery of the thousands of volunteers who fought numerous Red River floods to save the community. Intensive efforts were undertaken to ensure the project was mindful of inclusiveness for individuals who may be impacted by visual and hearing impairments via WayAround WayTag placement and Braille incorporation. Additionally, engravings have been completed on the support pillars of the archway to showcase the height of the five highest floods of record in Fargo, along with the impact of the FM Diversion Project on the water levels for both 100-year and 500-year flood events. Anticipated speakers at the lighting event include the following: • Brenda Derrig, City Engineer | The City of Fargo • Dr. Tim Mahoney, Mayor | The City of Fargo • Joe Dobbs, President | Fargo Lions Club • Karen Bakke, Visual Artist | "Spirit of the Sandbagger" • Julie Anderson, Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments | Fargo Public Schools • Dave Johnson, Lighting and Controls Manager | Gopher Stage Lighting • Jane Pettinger, Project Lead | Fargo Lions Club "Spirit of the Sandbagger" The "Spirit of the Sandbagger" public art piece was envisioned by Fargo Lions Club member Mike Benson. Local artist Karen Bakke designed the piece using a mixture of local men and women as models. Each figure represents all who served in many roles to fill and place sandbags, ensure the integrity of the sandbag dikes, feed the sandbaggers and coordinate these varied efforts seamlessly. Bakke designed the figures in the monument before transitioning her vision to Brock Davis of Davis Designs (Fargo) for fabrication. GSL Controls Specialist Ian Adam served as the lead dynamic illumination show designer. With permanent flood protection in Fargo less than six years from being fully realized, "The Spirit of the Sandbagger" serves as a reminder for future residents and visitors of the successful efforts of past generations who rose to the challenge of protecting the community from flood waters time and time again. The Fargo Lions Club successfully raised over $200,000 in combined cash and in-kind donations to ensure the unified art and lighting project was fully funded by private donations. The event will be recorded and broadcasted on The City of Fargo TV Fargo 56, at TVFargo.com TVFargo.com and streamed live across The City's social media platforms. This press release was produced by the City of Fargo. The views expressed here are the author's own.