‘Larger than life’: New sculpture installed in Mundelein’s Courtland Commons

An attention-grabbing sculpture is the latest piece of public art to be added to Mundelein’s streetscape.

The enormous, stone sculpture of an upturned hand is near the southeast corner of Seymour Avenue and Crystal Street in Courtland Commons park. Commissioned by the village in 2024, it was carved from a single 6,600-pound block of Indiana limestone by Kentucky artist Meg White.

The piece was named “Helping Hand” following a community poll orchestrated by the Mundelein Arts Commission. Other options included “Reaching Home,” “Let’s Shake Hands” and “The Healing.”

“I love the whimsy and uniqueness this sculpture brings to Mundelein,” said Colleen Malec, the village’s liaison to the arts commission. “A larger-than-life hand is the last thing you'd expect to come across while strolling through a park, and that's what makes it so memorable.”

The sculpture, which cost the village $18,500, is meant to be interactive. People can sit in the palm, climb on it, take photos with it or use it for other recreational purposes.

“It encourages people to slow down, stop and engage with their surroundings,” Malec said.

“Helping Hand” rests on the west side of the park’s pollinator garden. Other park features include a walking path and a stormwater detention basin that’s become a thriving ecosystem since it was completed in 2021.

White visited Mundelein for the installation and said she was impressed with the site.

“I hope the hand will draw people into the area so that they can discover the natural area beyond,” she said.

Videos of White working on “Helping Hand” are available on her YouTube channel, @possmom8.

“Helping Hand” isn’t White’s only sculpture in the Northwest suburbs.

“Awaking Muse,” a massive piece completed with fellow artist Don Lawler in 2006, is in the Schaumburg Sculpture Park near the Al Larson Cultural Center. It, too, is interactive; according to the Sculpture Park website, the 40-foot-long, stone woman reportedly whispers inspiration to anyone who sits in her hand.

Mundelein long has supported public art. Village-backed projects have included a trio of murals; other sculptures, including one called “Earth Flight” that’s also in Courtland Commons; and painted cows, stars and utility boxes.

The arts commission intends to install three small, pole-mounted art galleries around town this summer. One will be at Courtland Commons.

“Responsibly adding art in Mundelein is important to our overall and well rounded community success,” Mayor Robin Meier said.