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the son of a father who planned and built structures such as a wooden garage, and a mother who was a painter. Stan earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in industrial design and sculpture from Michigan State University and his Master of Fine Arts from Wayne State University in Detroit, and moved to Wyoming in 1979. He admires the work of the pioneers of modern architecture: Frank Lloyd Wright, Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier, and Gaudi. In the mid to late 60s, Stan was part of a movement to take sculpture out of the gallery and into the public space. “I wanted to bring modern and post-modern sculpture outside and let the environment determine the work so people could interact with it, not just look at it,” Stan explains. “I was ahead of my time.” Stan stuck to his artistic principles, creating public art pieces of all sizes. His commissioned artworks have been installed in Cheyenne, Laramie, and Hanna, Wyoming; Belle Isle and Clark Park, Detroit, Michigan; Montgomery County, Maryland; Dayton, Ohio; and The Federal Building, Wenatchee, Washington. His work can be found in The National Collection of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, and he is featured in John Beardsley’s book Earthworks and Beyond and Dennis Alan Nawrocki’s Art in Detroit Public Places. Stan’s awards include
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a Wyoming Arts Council Artist’s Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Art in Public Places Grant, and a National Endowment for the Arts Artist’s Fellowship. Stan’s artistic vision for WIND CODE has received a warm response. Fascinated by the creative process and the ability to construct a usable item, Stan spent his free time building lifesized play structures as a child, and uses that interpretation today. “I’m still feeling that,” he says. “I react to things much like a child; I enjoy recreating fantasy interpretations of life in my art.” WIND CODE fits this bill – and Stan witnessed that on a visit to take some photos of his sculpture. “I watched a family bail out of the car, and before anyone made it to the door of the center, the kids ran over to it, wanting to know what it was,” Stan says. “I liked seeing that.” The massive structure, constructed in Cheyenne, weighs approximately 34,000 pounds. “WIND CODE was designed to work with and react to the environment and the elements,” Stan says. “The sculpture will continually evolve and change. Its patina will age, the wind will flow through the slats, the sun will cast ever-changing patterns and the ice and snow will cover and melt in surprising ways.” The heavy steel is a nod to Detroit’s history in Stan. “I’ve still got that industrial influence,” Stan says. WIND CODE also reflects the state’s future. “This is a large scale sculpture that shows we’re looking forward as a state, not just in the past,” Stan says. “There’s no reason why we can’t be cowboys and astronauts at the same time.” W L M
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“I have been fascinated by snow fences for about 40 years,” Stan says. “I have taken pictures of them for years, searching for a way to make them into art.” When he thought about the project, the snow fence idea clicked. “The center focuses on tourism, and a large part of Wyoming’s tourism is the road,” Stan explains. “There aren’t many roads in Wyoming that don’t have a snow fence somewhere along the way. I took the idea of cutting the {snow fence} rectangle in half on the diagonal, which makes an isosceles triangle.” The structure itself also mimics the center, with its steel components and high-tech elements. “I knew the structure needed to be large enough to hold its own in the space,” Stan says. While these items lend an industrial component to the piece, it also has a more delicate side in its composition. “It actually works like a giant piece of origami,” he adds. “It is a unique piece of art in Wyoming because it is completely abstract, and not what I call ‘traditional Wyoming art’ involving wildlife or scenery.” Stan Dolega’s career in sculpture stretches decades and two states that merge their influence on his style. Born in industrial Detroit, Michigan, Stan is
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