Visitors to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s Windgate Center of Art and Design will now see art before they even enter the doors. A 7-foot-tall wooden sculpture by Arkansas artist Robyn Horn was installed this week on the center’s plaza entry as the first in the center’s Sculpture Garden.

On Thursday, Oct. 4, more than 100 patrons gathered at the Windgate Center to celebrate the new artwork and to honor Horn, whose longtime support for art and education was instrumental in the creation of the Windgate Center of Art and Design.

Horn’s sculpture, purchased by the UA Little Rock Foundation, is a redwood and dye creation titled “Hypothetical Destination” – a phrase borrowed from lyrics in the James Taylor song “Walking Man.” (Horn is a huge James Taylor fan.)

“Moving in silent desperation

Keeping an eye on the holy land

A hypothetical destination

Say, who is this walking man?”

The sculpture is one of the works from Horn’s Slipping Stone Series, a recurring theme throughout her career.

“It is a wonderful inaugural piece for our forthcoming sculpture garden in this plaza,” said Tom Clifton, chair of the Department of Art and Design. “The sense of motion created by the slipping stones is aligned perfectly to the forward momentum of the Windgate Center of Art and Design, and it’s an honor for all of us fortunate enough to be part of this time in the history of the department.”

Horn, who has been wood sculptor for more than 30 years, is known nationally for her sculptures and paintings. Her work has been exhibited and included in public collections across the country, including at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville.

A collection of Horn’s sculptures is also on display inside the Brad Cushman Gallery through the weekend.

 In the top right photo, party guests toast sculptor Robyn Horn during a reception celebrating Horn’s work and the installation of a new art piece in front of UA Little Rock’s Windgate Center of Art and Design.

Above right: “Hypothetical Destination,” a wood sculpture by Robyn Horn, has been installed outside the Windgate Center of Art and Design. Photos by Benjamin Krain