STEVENS POINT, WI (WSAU) — The Cultural Commons in Stevens Point has a new addition as of last week.
Mayor Mike Wiza says a 160 pound stone carving from Esteli, Nicaragua was installed in the park, meaning two of the city’s three global partner and sister cities are now represented.
“I’m calling it a self-portrait,” said Wiza. “It’s his [artist Alberto Gutierrez’s] family portrait, his mother and siblings are on one side, and then he is on the other. It’s very, very beautiful.”
The carving was hauled down the mountain by several hikers from both Stevens Point and Esteli. Wiza says there were also several pieces of paperwork to get the rock through customs before it finally got to Wisconsin.
Wiza says Gutierrez is known around the world for his carvings. He lives in the mountains outside Esteli, and regularly welcomes visitors and tourists from around the globe who make the one hour hike up to his home to see the art.
The commons already has a bell from Stevens Point’s sister city in Russia and will soon have a metal statue representing their sister city in Poland. Wiza says a Wisconsin artist is commissioning two metal eagles, one American bald eagle and one Polish eagle, that will also fill the park.
In addition to gifts from other nations, the park also includes a Native American ricing canoe as a nod to those who farmed the land before the settlers came in.
RELATED: Walk-through held at new Stevens Point Cultural Commons
Wiza says the park remains a work in progress with several plantings and other artifacts yet to be installed. The park informally opened in August of 2019 when city leaders held a walk-through ceremony.
Cultural Commons is located within Pfiffner Pioneer Park near the Wisconsin River in downtown Stevens Point. More information about the park can be found at http://www.spculturalcommons.com/.
