In recent years, the sculpture centered in Prexy’s Pasture, “The University Family,” has sparked some debate not only among the students of the university but also among Laramie’s art community regarding how effective the piece is in accurately portraying a UW family today.
The sculpture was created in 1983 and depicts a mother, father and child by well-known artist, Robert Russin, who is also the artist of the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Monument off of I-80. Russin’s work tends to focus primarily on the “family.” Although this piece of artwork is thought to be an accurate portrayal of a traditional family during the 1980’s, many feel it’s time to replace it with a more up-to-date piece.
“I’m not sure what exactly I’d like to see in it, maybe more of homage to the student life in general rather than the classical family,” finance and economics student Madeline Moore said.
The reading of “The University of Wyoming Family” has also become politicized due to it being made of white marble in addition to portraying the traditional family image of a mother, father and child.
While Russin has various pieces placed around town, including a bronze sculpture in Undine Park and a piece in the Laramie Community Recreation Center that are not made of white marble, this piece, in particular, has fallen under speculation for assumingly being representative of a white hetero-normative family.
“A lot of students don’t feel like it really represents a Wyoming family anymore, because what is a Wyoming family?” Head of the Department of Art Ricki Klages said. “It’s so many different things.”
In response to the question, “What is a Wyoming family today?,” Jasmine Vaira, a Wyoming native and current UW student, suggested taking a different route by having a piece of artwork depicting women and men on graduation day walking up a set of stairs to receive their diplomas.
“We don’t want to retract this from history because it’s a part of history,” Klages said. “But, you need to make sure the conversation is there and understand the context in which that piece was placed.”
Since its installment in the early eighties, the sculpture has degraded. Due to natural elements and past vandalism, it is in need of being refurbished and placed indoors, safe from the harsh Wyoming winters.
Another main issue that came up when consultants discussed the future of the sculpture was that the piece is too small for the large space of Prexy’s Pasture. If they were to replace it, Klages said they would need to take into consideration a piece that is fitting for the area.
