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My name's Beth Nybeck.
I'm a metal sculptor,
and I live and work
in Kansas City, Missouri.
I'm a Midwest girl,
grew up in Iowa,
and went to school at the
University of Northern Iowa.
And that's where I learned
how to work with metal.
Right now I'm in the
middle of working
on this piece called
Tidal Murmur, for City
of Columbia, Missouri.
And right now I have
one of the pieces,
the wave right behind me,
is pretty close to finished.
And then there's
another wave behind that
that's mid progress.
Beth Nybeck was one
of three finalists who
were chosen to submit design
proposals for the Short Street
parking garage.
And the Standing
Committee on Public Art
really gravitated
towards her design,
with the three
waves representing
the ripple effect,
and community,
and how that theme can
represent Columbia.
The response was overwhelming
in how many people really seemed
to favor her sculpture
at that site, right
at the intersection of
Walnut and Short Street,
in the plaza area.
When I was first dreaming about
this project for Columbia,
they brought me in
and did a site visit.
So you walk through
the downtown.
You talk to people.
You see what sort of
businesses are there.
And for me, that
time is like a time
for kind of soaking
in the vibe of a city.
What's happening here?
What is the energy like?
What does it feel like?
What am I feeling?
And so in Columbia,
I felt that there
was a great sense of growth.
The ripple effect,
which is something
that I've been
thinking about a lot,
talks about how one person's
actions can influence
another person's actions.
And it creates these vibes
in the city, these waves.
And so I think about sound
waves, and vibrations,
and things like that.
And so I started to
think about waves.
And that's how I came up
with these wave forms that
talk about energy, movement.
So I've been working closely
with the Office of Cultural
Affairs.
And they've been just a
great group of people.
I've had wonderful conversation
and great dialogue.
The Percent for Art
program was established
by city ordinance in 1997.
And 1% of the budget of any
capital building or renovation
project with a budget of
over $1 million dollars,
1% of that budget goes toward
site specific public art.
Now people often ask
me, did you always
know you were going
to be an artist?
Or as a little kid, were you
building things with blocks,
and painting, and drawing?
And I really wasn't.
But the one thing that
I was doing as a kid
was dreaming,
dreaming really big.
My parents raised me
in a household of boys,
to think you have
the ability to do
anything you set your mind to.
And I've been given
a heart that really
wants to influence the world.
And this is a career
path that I've
chosen to do just
that, to dream really,
really big, to
influence communities.
And it's something that
I wake up in the morning,
I'm excited about.
And I go to bed exhausted
at night, still dreaming
about what I can do,
what I can create,
how I can start conversations,
and can influence a community
with artwork.
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