"The Acrobats"

Title: "The Acrobats"

Sculptor: Edward Whiting, Professor and Head of Coe College Art Department at the time the sculpture was commissioned.

Location: Redeker Complex courtyard

Date Installed: November 5, 1965

Cost: $3,000

Larger Associated Project: "The Acrobats" was built in conjunction with the Regent's Dining Hall (now Redeker Center). Along with the sculpture, student artists contributed to panels of interior artwork.

Description: Built of fiberglass, this sixteen-foot sculpture consists of three acrobats balanced one on top of the other.  Arletta Ballantine Brown, Class of 1951, posed for the top figure in the sculpture.

Critical Reaction: "The Acrobats" received less negative criticism than other sculptures on campus, perhaps in part because students were involved in the process. At President Maucker's suggestion, a group of students went to Whiting's studio to assist the sculptor.

Compiled by Sarah Eaton; edited by Susan Basye
Special Collections and University Archives
October 1997