University Star

All man-made structures are going to be removed from the property at Aquarena Center in Texas State’s plans — including artist Buck Winn’s sculptures.

Bill Nance, vice president for Finance and Support Services, said the sculptures will be dismantled and stored in a university warehouse for an indefinite period of time.

“We are working toward returning the Aquarena Center to its natural state, and a large metal sculpture is in opposition to that,” Nance said. “I have five or six letters out to historical organizations offering the sculptures to them, but no one has stepped up.”

Nance said the university is looking for a place to keep the sculptures on campus, but a location remains uncertain. The Wittliff Collections will not be able to accommodate the outdoor sculptures in their gallery, which is located on the seventh floor of the Alkek Library.

Paul Rodgers, owner of the old Spring Lake Hotel and Aquarena Springs Theme Park before the university bought the land in 1994, commissioned Winn to create a sculpture to shade guests while waiting to ride the sky gondola. The sculptures were built May 19, 1963 and were formed to mimic blooming morning glories. The sculptures were painted over the years, and today they are now peeling.

The sculptures’ dismantling coincides with the Wittliff Collections' search for financial support to restore three panels of Winn’s Cattle Ranching mural, and a December viewing of the Winn documentary, Larger Than Life.

Beverly Fondren, development officer for the Wittliff Collections, said the response for the panels and documentary have remained positive. Tinka Eoff, daughter of Winn and former president of the Wimberley Institute of Cultures, does not understand why her father’s two art projects at Texas State are planned to have such different fates.

“I think it’s really odd that Texas State is trying to restore the (Cattle Ranching) panels, but they aren’t doing a thing to try and keep the statues,” Eoff said.

Eoff said she hopes the sculptures will be restored back to their original state and preserved by the university to use on campus.

Fondren said the restoration of the panels could take years to complete.

“The work will take some time,” Fondren said. “Each panel will take six months. It will take a year or a year in a half for all the panels together. We are still seeking support — we only have enough support for one panel.”

Eoff believes in the power students wield to influence the school to retain her father’s sculptures.

“What students say counts for a lot,” Eoff said. “Students can move boulders.”