Hay, look! Public art in Hardberger Park
The towering figures, which stand up to 17-feet tall and weigh more than 1,000 pounds each, spent the last two years on city-owned property near Mission San Juan de Capistrano.
When the loan expired, former Mayor Phil Hardberger asked Humphreys to show the exhibition at Hardberger Park, a perfect fit given the park’s more than 100-year heritage as a thriving dairy farm. Prior to coming to San Antonio, Makin’ Hay had been on display in the states of California, Washington and Idaho.
The figures were installed at the park last week.
One of San Antonio’s most unusual — and memorable if you’ve ever happened upon it — art exhibitions will greet visitors when the second phase of Phil Hardberger Park opens Saturday, May 21st. Makin’ Hay, an installation of three giant steel and hay figures, graces an open field behind the new playground on the west side of the park. The exhibition, which was created by Tom Otterness, whom the New York Times once called “the world’s best public sculptor,” is on loan from the Alturas Foundation, a San Antonio-based visual arts organization committed to works focusing on American culture.