Lombard launches first county sculpture art show

The evolution from high school art student to art exhibitioner came quickly for Nick Marchese.

The 16-year-old Willowbrook High School student was among more than a dozen professional and student sculptors whose works were on display Saturday at Lilacia Park in Lombard.

The event, dubbed the inaugural DuPage Invitational Sculpture and 3-D Art Show, was organized by Lombard civic leaders in an effort to showcase local talent and create an outlet for artists to display and sell their work.

"There's not been an art fair centering around sculpture in the county," said Deb Dynako, one of the organizers. "We thought we'd try something different."

Marchese was approached by his art teacher to participate after taking a sculpture class during the spring semester. On display was a beehive-like pot riddled with holes, along with another ceramics piece created by a classmate.

"I saw a really cool beehive once, so I guess that was my inspiration," Marchese said. "It's not really supposed to represent anything in particular."

Three jurors spent the day judging the 32 pieces on display, which ranged from psychedelic multicolored chairs to dismembered metal hands that looked like leftover props from the Terminator movie set.

Dynako said all 17 artists have some connection to DuPage County.

Lombard native Lars Eikens has been creating metal sculptures in his home since he was a teenager, an interest he said grew out of classes he took at a vocational school and at the College of DuPage.

"Everything's created under a tarp on my front lawn," Eichens said. "I've got all the resources I need here. People will come over and just drop off materials in my backyard without any explanation. Metal pieces that end up being the stuff you see here."

Organizers planned to award more than $3,000 in prize money and scholarships to the artists at Saturday's show, Dynako said.