A piece of public art located on Salt Lake City’s east side has resulted in some divisive opinions amongst residents in the community.
Artist Stephen Kesler created his massive, full-size sculpture of a humpback whale entitled ‘Out of the Blue’ with the intention of reflecting the 9th and 9th neighborhood that he loves. Mike Murdock, another artist, added onto Kesler’s work by painting a multi-colored mural over top of it. This mural will most likely change every few years as more artists step forward to put their own touches over top of the sculpture, a tradition that would coincide with Kesler’s intentions of reflecting the neighborhood the piece resides in.
Many residents in the community have shared their love for the piece while many others have shared what they dislike about it.
Sunny Evans, a resident who works at a nearby coffee shop, says that the art piece brings a lot of charm to the already cool neighborhood, a belief that is shared by several others in the community. But Sonia Rubinfeld and a few other residents shared their dislikes over the sculpture.
Art critic Scott Hill says that it’s great how Kesler’s creation is sparking conversation, as it’s important for a community to have different perspectives on a piece of art.
