CONTINUUM

CONTINUUM. Created by Paul T. Granlund, sculptor in residence at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota, the 24-foot, seven thousand pound sculpture was the winner of the Five Flags Sculpture Contest held in 1973 sponsored by the DUBUQUE ART ASSOCIATION through the Iowa Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts. The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development paid $27,000 for the sculpture. Granlund received a $1,000 prize in federal money through the Iowa Arts Council. (1) Brought to Dubuque from St. Paul, Minnesota on a barge, the sculpture was installed in May 1975 at Fifth Street and TOWN CLOCK PLAZA and immediately drew sharp criticism and some praise. (2)

Meant as a tribute to the bi-centennial of the United States, the sculptor described his creation--

                 The helix, emblematic of life force, makes to full clockwise
                 cycles signifying two centuries. The semi-reflective facets of
                 the two square cube faces, which represent decades, will
                 reflect the surrounding natural and architectural elements, as
                 well as the images and movements of people. (3)

The sculpture was relocated to a lot at the city's operations and maintenance facility along Kerper Boulevard in January 2002 after the reopening of Main Street. Among those anxious to see it moved to a better location was Walter PETERSON who described the sculpture as "representing movement and a municipality moving forward." Among the suggestions was to move the sculpture in front of a new operations and maintenance facility located between EAGLE WINDOW AND DOOR and FLYNN READY-MIX CONCRETE COMPANY on Kerper when it was completed in 2004. (4)

The suggestion was accepted and in 2005 Continuum became the focal point of the Municipal Services Center under construction on Kerper Court. (5)

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Source:

1. "'Continuum' Critics Have a Field Day," Telegraph Herald, April 25, 1976, p. 25

2. "Barge to Bring City Sculpture," Telegraph-Herald, May 13, 1975, p. 2

3. Ibid.

4. Coyle, Erin, "'Continuum Awaits New Home," Telegraph Herald, December 31, 2002, p. 1

5. "As Its Name Implies, 'Continuum' Keeps Moving," Telegraph Herald, July 18, 2005, p. 4