Klamath County, Oregon – The Klamath County Library Foundation Board is asking artists to help design a new landmark for the library garden in the downtown area. The board has started a contest for statue designs that should show the spirit of reading, libraries, imagination, nature, and community. Experience is not a problem. You don’t have to make the whole piece to apply.
Before submitting, the organizers suggest that you visit the downtown branch. The garden is the planned location, and a staff member can give interested artists a quick overview of the space and any practical issues. Accepted ideas should fit within established limits. The proposed works should be between four and eight feet tall, up to five feet wide, and made of materials that are weatherproof, cheap, and durable, such as concrete, resin, or scrap metal.
It’s easy to get in. Artists can get further information and forms at the Reference Desk at the downtown branch or on the library’s website. The deadline is 5 p.m. on November 1. After that period, submissions will not be examined.
This work is part of the foundation’s larger goal to upgrade and improve public facilities throughout Klamath County’s library system. The Library Service District’s revenue doesn’t cover big capital improvements, but core operations are safe at their current levels. The foundation’s purpose is to fill the gap so that facilities can serve more people and work more smoothly.
The record reveals that things have been getting better for twenty years. Since becoming a nonprofit in 2004, the foundation has helped the main library add a program room and a children’s area in 2009, expand the Bonanza branch in 2010, open a new building for the South Suburban library in 2012, install external book drops at several branches in 2013, deliver a new Sprague River library building in 2018, buy educational computers in 2020, add a garden deck at the main library in 2022, and finish a janitor and utility room at the main library in 2023.
The Klamath County Library Community Courtyard wants to build an outdoor amphitheater and a pollinator garden as a place for people to meet, learn, and enjoy the arts. The statue contest fits in with that objective by giving the garden a focal point that attracts visitors in and highlights the library’s position as a community center.
Residents who wish to do more than just send in a design can get involved directly. The foundation is looking for people to assist them collect money through events, pledges, gifts, and grants. The board meets once a month on the first Wednesday at noon at the downtown main library. People who want to join or provide money can get in touch with the foundation by email or by sending forms to the organization’s P.O. Box in Klamath Falls.
