Artist Jeremy Wolf, 38, of Milwaukee set the latest Friends of Sculpture piece into place Friday afternoon outside the West Bend Police Department on Vine Street.
Wolf, who specializes in animals, got his inspiration for the eagle from the WBPD badge.
“I liked how the eagle was on top of the badge and I kinda used that as a way into the design process,” Wolf said. “I tried to take that real stylized eagle from the badge and tried to render it in a way that was more realistic.”
Wolf said he “messed around” with some other designs, but always gravitated back to what is a very majestic design.
The sculpture, which weighs 250 pounds, took about a year to finish. “The eagle itself was in my studio for about five months and after that it went to the foundry,” said Wolf.
West Bend Police Chief Ken Meuler is part of Friends of Sculpture. “We came up with several suggestions and then presented those to Jeremy,” Meuler said.
“Then he took our badge and our patch and came back with a number of drawings and we met with Shawn Graff and others with Friends of Sculpture and our own staff; if you look at it it has a lot of characteristics about the eagle from our badge.”
Wolf has another piece of art in the city as he created the animals to the north of the West Bend Depot that sit alongside the Eisenbahn State Trail.
hey jeremy: My sister still has your majestic cardinal head hanging in her Kansas City kitchen. I remember you fondly from our days on National Avenue in Milwaukee. i certainly would love to see an exhibition of your work at the Museum of Wisconsin Art here in West Bend.
That wonderful Cardinal head mask also gets a full-bore treatment with lights and evergreen fronds at Christmastime. His wonderful face is a constant companion in my kitchen. Love your work, Jeremy!