O'Dwyer ends tenure as BPSW Artistic Director

Kevin O'Dwyer came to Lincoln to make knives, but after ten years and multiple trips to and from his home in Ireland, he's leaving behind an award-winning sculpture park.

2021 marks O'Dwyer's ninth year as the artistic director for Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild, a position he originally expected to hold for only about two years.

"It's been a really great experience; the ups and downs and all the rest of it," he said. "At the end of the day we have a beautiful facility."

In his time as artistic director, O'Dwyer has curated work from 24 artists from around the world to create a first-of-its-kind sculpture park in the US: a facility featuring site specific work created by artists who drew their inspiration directly from the landscape, environment and history of the community.

"At the end of this there will be 22 permanent pieces or semi-permanent pieces on site."

O'Dwyer credits the artists, particularly the first four – Steven Siegel, Alan Counihan, Jorn Ronneau and Jaakko Pernu – for having faith in the project and in the community.

"As I've said before, symposium artists are different from artists sitting in a workshop. They are people who can engage with a community, work with a community and are also story tellers," he said. "Every one of them who have come here have caught some part of the history, either the industrial or environmental history here, or some story line, and they've responded to it. The beauty of the work is, its abstract work, but it has a story behind it; it has something to do within the community."

An internationally renowned silversmith, O'Dwyer first came to Lincoln in the spring of 2012 to learn the art of Damascus steel from Lincoln's master bladesmith Rick Dunkerley. As his trip wound down, he mentioned that Lincoln might be a good site for a sculpture park, based on his earlier experience with establishing Sculpture in the Parklands near Lough Boora, Ireland. Dunkerley took the idea and ran with it. He introduced the idea to the community through a series of small, informal meetings in early 2013 and built broad support for the idea with help from the Lincoln Council for the Arts.

"It wouldn't have happened without Rick here on the ground, while I was in Ireland contacting the artists and doing that side of it," O'Dwyer said during his remarks Saturday, Sept. 25, at the launch of the two newest pieces of artwork in Sculpture in the Wild. "Rick was the man knocking on the doors and doing so much of it, and then the initial committee that was here as well."

O'Dwyer also credited Paul and Caroline Roos for their early support of the idea. "It was very important when we started getting the concept put together. We went and sat down with Paul and Caroline and ... they were all for it," he said at the launch.

By the fall of 2013 the nascent project had a name and O'Dwyer returned for a community presentation on the benefits a sculpture park could provide, based on both his own experience and education. "It will become a Montana art destination once it's there. It takes a while. This is looking at it over a ten-year period," he said at the time.

He noted that Sculpture in the Parklands, a very well-established sculpture park, saw about 50,000 visitors annually, and that commerce follows as cultural tourism grows.

O'Dwyer told the BVD there is no doubt in his mind that Lincoln has seen that come to fruition, with more than 50,000 people visiting BPSW last year.

"I do feel it has put a buzz into the town and it has helped a lot of other projects kind of move forward as well, kind of putting Lincoln on the map," he said.

Looking back on the development of the park and all the people and organizations who donated or played a role in its development, O'Dwyer noted the pivotal role foundation funding from organizations like Kendeda Fund and Tippet Rise have played. He also credited BPSW President Becky Garland pulling a lot together on the ground here. But thanking all the donors and volunteers is a much taller order. "I can't thank everyone because there are so many people, I would leave somebody out," he told the BVD. "As a whole the community has been such an important part of this."

He admitted it was a very abstract idea and, although he was able to offer an example from Ireland, people came out and took the leap, and that was important.

"It also shows it can happen, and you can make a difference; you can make a difference in many ways," he said. "I feel positive about not only the future of the sculpture park, but also of Lincoln. It's like a second home to me."

As Sculpture in the Wild Artistic Director, O'Dwyer has been instrumental in fundraising, and has been a critical link to the international art world. His departure will leave a void, but he believes Sculpture in the Wild is in good shape heading into the future. Next year Bently Spang will be at BPSW as artist-in-residence, and Philip Aaberg will return as composer-in-residence. Both residencies are already paid for.

From an infrastructure and maintenance standpoint, O'Dwyer and facility manager Marshall Bullis spent much of the last month repairing and refurbishing damage to various sculptures, while construction of the park's new utility building should be completed later this fall.

"I think you can keep it very sustainable on a much smaller budget," he said. "You do have some local donors, and there still will be some family foundation money coming in on the continual that will keep the place maintained."

The amount of money donated by people visiting the park will also help take some of the pressure off but looking further out, it will be up to the BPSW board of directors to chart a path forward.

"I think this coming year will be a year for the board to sit down and see what direction they want to go with the park, kick around some ideas" O'Dwyer said. "I know I've driven it all this time, and I'm sure board members have ideas they haven't been able to utilize because of my passion for this. I think it's a good time to step back a little bit, not feel under pressure, and look to the future and how it will develop."

O'Dwyer plans to supply the board with past grant applications and information to use as reference for future fundraising, as well as the library of photographs he's shot over the years.

INntime, the future of Sculpture in the Wild will rest with the younger generations, which is one reason O'Dwyer put such emphasis on the Sculpture in the Wild education program

'I think that's a pleasure I get every time I come here, seeing the children engage with the pieces. That's always been an important part, as an educator myself, that the children will get a lot out of this. They are the future, they will be the caretakers, the ones who stay here will be, hopefully, involved in keeping the park going as well."

Last year, COVID-19 canceled the events at Sculpture in the Wild, and travel restrictions kept O'Dwyer from making his annual trip to Lincoln. He said it was great to get back this year to catch up with friends and people who helped develop the park, although he lamented the absence of Paul Roos, who passed away last November.

"I always loved seeing him. He took me fly fishing for the first time; you can't forget that type of fun," he said. "It's been that happy and that sad side of things. Lots of memories. My piece is called Montana Memories, and there have been a lot of Montana memories."

O'Dwyer expects to be back in two years, this time as a cultural tourist visiting for the 10th anniversary of Sculpture in the Wild.