ARTS • Public Art Projects

Several Public Art Projects have been sponsored fully or in part by the Chickasha Area Arts Council. The first of these projects was the Songosaurus located just as you enter the park at the 9th Street entrance. The Chickasha Area Arts Council selected Duff Bassett's Songosaurus for the Shannon Springs Play Sculpture. The sculpture is a large scale sculpture that incorporates sound (using gongs) with whimsy.

The second public art project between CAAC and the City of Chickasha was funded through a Local Government Challenge Grant from the Oklahoma Arts Council. The City of Chickasha and the Chickasha Area Arts Council collaborated on the enhancement of Shannon Springs Park with a building-sized mural painted by Dr. Bob Palmer, Jeff Ecker and UCO students. The project was the end of a year-long process looking at how Chickasha could express its identity through historical events and motifs. There are six images painted that reflect Chickasha's heritage through agriculture, people and historic buildings. Citizens are invited to go to the park and view the mural on the north and east sides of the Shannon Springs Pool House.

In keeping with our goals, CAAC worked with city leadership in April 2009 for strategic planning for an arts/entertainment district for downtown Chickasha. It was determined at that time to focus artistic energy on the Rock Island Depot area for festivals and our next public art project. In December 2009, CAAC was notified that they were awarded a NEA Community Fast-Track grant to work with sculptor Archie Held on a public art sculpture in the Rock Island Depot Area.

If you wish to see more information about the project, click here.