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'Helmholtz,' 1985, by Mark di Suvero, painted and stainless steel. Image courtesy of Fort Wayne Museum of Art.

Big bill to repair Fort Wayne museum’s damaged sculpture

Catherine Saunders-Watson
Catherine Saunders-Watson

'Helmholtz,' 1985, by Mark di Suvero, painted and stainless steel. Image courtesy of Fort Wayne Museum of Art.
‘Helmholtz,’ 1985, by Mark di Suvero, painted and stainless steel. Image courtesy of Fort Wayne Museum of Art.
FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) – Fort Wayne Museum of Art officials estimate it could cost more than $200,000 and take perhaps a year to repair a large steel sculpture that was knocked over and damaged by a truck that barreled across its lawn.

The 8- to 10-ton sculpture sitting outside the museum was hit early Sunday, with police arresting the 23-year-old driver on drunken driving charges.

Charles Shepard, the museum’s executive director, told The Journal Gazette that the damage was the most serious the museum had ever experienced and that he was surprised by the extent of the damage.

“I never would have guessed when I got the call that the truck dented it,” Shepard said. “I never would have believed the power would be there to knock the sculpture down.”

The truck drove from the street, over the sidewalk and missed a nearby tree before striking one of the sculpture’s legs. The piece of steel went through the front of the truck and became wedged in the hood, said Scott Tarr, the museum’s director of security.

The driver fled and was arrested a short time later, police said.

Shepard said museum’s insurance company would talk with the driver’s insurance carrier about how the repair costs estimated at between $200,000 and $300,000 will be covered.

The sculpture made of stainless and painted steel was created by American artist Mark di Suvero in 1985 on a commission from Rea Magnet Wire Co. to celebrate its 50th anniversary in Fort Wayne. It is named “Helmholtz” in honor of 19th-century German physicist Hermann von Helmholtz, who worked in the field of magnets.

The museum’s technical staff found the sculpture couldn’t simply be flipped back into place and have its beams straightened, Shepard said.

“There was some glimmer of hope for a moment or two that maybe we could prop things up and bending them back into place, but no, (the damage is) too extensive,” he said.

Shepard said he spoke with di Suvero, 79, on Sunday and sent photos to him Monday so he could begin to plan for repairs.

“The artist is totally in shock about it … although he’s thinking ‘All right, we’ll get together and see how we can fix this stuff,”’ Shepard said.

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Information from: The Journal Gazette, http://www.journalgazette.net

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ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

'Helmholtz,' 1985, by Mark di Suvero, painted and stainless steel. Image courtesy of Fort Wayne Museum of Art.
‘Helmholtz,’ 1985, by Mark di Suvero, painted and stainless steel. Image courtesy of Fort Wayne Museum of Art.