Loveland, Colorado, celebrates the 30th Anniversary of the Thompson Valley Rotary Club and the eradication of polio in the world through an awe-inspiring art installation. The revitalized downtown area known as The Foundry will soon be home to fresh local restaurants, luxurious condos, plush hotels and a sweeping plaza centered around The Legacy Project.
The Legacy Project is a collaboration between Denny Haskew and the National Sculptors’ Guild and JK Designs, founded by Guild president. It’s titled Reaching Our Goal and is inspired by the role that partnerships meant in developing a polio vaccine and eradicating the disease. To echo this theme of partnership and community, the Rotary Club of Thompson Valley included local businesses to sponsor the project and local contractors, such as Pro Lift Crane Service, to complete the piece.
Over 60,000 pounds of sandstone, native to the Loveland area, are displayed around the plaza. These monoliths center around the focal point of the art installation, the sculpture of a woman helping a teenage boy surmount a stone precipice. This echoes the Rotary motto, “Service Above Self.” Each of the monoliths describes successes of Loveland and the Thompson Valley Rotary Club, including acts of community charity and individual works.
Bringing these monoliths into downtown Loveland wasn’t an easy task. The smallest of these weighs over 1000 pounds, while the largest, central monolith clocks in at a whopping two tons! Specialty equipment and professional execution were needed to source the right stone, remove it from the mountains, and then bring it to Loveland for the Sculptor’s Guild to analyze. Sandstone is relatively soft, easy to carve and engrave. Placement of each monolith needed to be done carefully, as the stones could chip or shatter due to their soft nature. In addition, some of the pieces of the installation required the stone to be stacked, creating height and interest. Perfect placement of each piece was essential, both for safety and to match the artist’s conception.
Pro Lift is reputed to be the best crane service in the greater Denver area, and for good reason. With a sterling reputation for safety and precise attention to detail, there was really only one choice for the National Sculptor’s Guild when it came time to place the sandstone monoliths and other pieces of The Foundry’s art installation. The hydraulic truck crane was capable of moving the stone from one place to the next and exactly positioning it where artist Denny Haskew directed.
Transportation of the stone to downtown Loveland was also the responsibility of Pro Lift. Each stone piece was carefully loaded and covered to preserve the fine craftsmanship and design. As each piece of sandstone was delivered, Pro Lift began their second phase of responsibility in the project.
Each sandstone piece was carefully lifted into place using a mobile crane. Those that were placed upright needed to be carefully positioned in their assigned places, with the engravings fully visible and undamaged. For the sandstone stacks, the orientation and positioning of each one was a delicate matter. The weight and balance of each stone were carefully considered in order to keep the stones safely in place as well as portray Haskew’s vision.
The art installation was completed before the end of November 2018. Pro Lift is proud about our role in this community project. Take a look at pictures taken during the installation:
