


Client: Preservation Trust of Vermont
Location: Burlington, VT, United States
Completion date: 2019
Artwork budget: $330,000
Project Team
Client
Preservation Trust of Vermont
Artist
Jim Sardonis
Natural Forms, INC
Industry Resource
Polich Tallix
Overview
Thirty years after completing “Reverence,” the black granite whales’ tails that reside in South Burlington, VT, I was commissioned to create a new, larger version in bronze. “Whale Dance” is now installed in the very same spot that Reverence spent its first ten years. After helping stop a proposed development of this land, the Preservation Trust of Vermont, with the help of funding from the Vermont Community Foundation, commissioned a new work for the old site. Whale Dance arrived in July of 2019 to a very warm welcome by the Randolph community.
Goals
It turns out that the people of Randolph missed the sculpture they had grown accustomed to on the beautiful hillside off I 89 Exit 4 with a stunning view of the mountains beyond. The goal was to create something reminiscent of the earlier work that had been here but different in design, size and material.
Process
I created many scale models which were shared and reviewed with the commissioning agency. Together we chose the final design.
Additional Information
The work was cast at the Polich-Tallix Foundry in Rock Tavern, NY.