{"id":452757,"date":"2026-05-30T13:47:17","date_gmt":"2026-05-30T13:47:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/452757\/"},"modified":"2026-05-30T13:47:17","modified_gmt":"2026-05-30T13:47:17","slug":"5000-pound-kc-sculpture-adds-art-to-berkley-riverfront-park","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/452757\/","title":{"rendered":"5,000-pound KC sculpture adds art to Berkley Riverfront Park"},"content":{"rendered":"

Memphis, Tennessee, artist Ben Butler<\/a> called the moment on Friday morning \u201cterrifying.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when, around 10 a.m., Butler, fitted with a hard hat and gloves, watched through his glasses as crane operators carefully snapped straps to \u201cRivercloud,\u201d the weight of a Dodge Durango, and hoisted it until it dangled.<\/p>\n

\"A A new sculpture, \u201cRivercloud,\u201d lies on a trailer just prior to be hoisted by crane into place at Berkley Riverfront Park on Friday, May 29, 2026. Eric Adler The Kansas City Star <\/p>\n

At 5,000-pounds, or two tons, the abstract powder-blue sculpture \u2014 created from thin layers of curvilinear steel sheets \u2014 is one that Butler created and which, as of Friday, would be lowered and fixed into place to become the latest in a growing number of public art pieces now overlooking the Missouri River at Kansas City\u2019s Berkley Riverfront Park.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\u201cRivercloud,\u201d \u201cRivercloud,\u201d a 5,000-pound abstract sculpture by Memphis artist Ben Butler was installed on Friday, May 29, 2026, a the Berkley Riverfront Park. Eric Adler The Kansas City Star <\/p>\n

\u201cThe site ended up being really perfect for the piece,\u201d Butler said Friday.<\/p>\n

Public art in Kanas City<\/p>\n

He said that in 2024, he was commissioned by the city, as part of it\u2019s 1% art program,<\/a> to create a sculpture which was originally slated to be installed downtown, perhaps even at City Hall. But as Kansas City\u2019s riverfront developed, so did the idea to place the work at the riverfront, which ended up being fitting given the piece\u2019s inspiration.<\/p>\n

\"Composed Composed of 40 layers of steel sheets, Ben Butler\u2019s sculpture, \u201cRivercloud,\u201d installed Friday, May 20, 2026, at Berkley Riverfront Park, changes appearance from solid to nearly see-through depending on perspective. Eric Adler The Kansas City Star <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was designed as kind of an abstract manifestation of cloud forms and river forms,\u201d Butler said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing I\u2019m really excited about with this sculpture \u2014 because of the way it is constructed as layers \u2014 it is this solid complex form from most angles, but then from the side angle it almost sort of disappears. You can see right through it. . . .\u201d<\/p>\n

Massive but ephemeral<\/p>\n

Butler spoke of his interest in \u201chybrid\u201d forms, like clouds and coursing rivers, that possess dual natures.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething that really interested me is this kind of visual paradox, maybe, where it can at once seems both massive, complex and ephemeral, light. The way we\u2019re installing it, hopefully it has this kind of quality of lightness, like it\u2019s barely perched on the grass. Even though it\u2019s 5,000 pounds, it has this kind of ephemerality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Artist Artist Ben Butler of Memphis, Tennessee stands alongside his sculpture, \u201cRivercloud,\u201d shortly after installation at Berkley Riverfront Park on Friday, May 29, 2026. Eric Adler The Kansas City Star <\/p>\n

Patrick Pierce, the director of communications for, PortKC, said the development agency<\/a> looked to get the sculpture installed prior to the beginning of the World Cup,<\/a> with the first match in Kansas City at GEHA field at Arrowhead Stadium<\/a> scheduled for Tuesday, June 16, when Argentina faces Algeria.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, getting the riverfront ready for the world to see,\u201d Pierce said, \u201cbut also for Kansas Citians.. Kansas City is really a city for the arts in many ways. And, obviously, the riverfront has, historically, been underserved.\u201d<\/p>\n

That is changing, he said.<\/p>\n

Art grows on the riverfront<\/p>\n

On May 18, an extension of Kansas City\u2019s streetcar line opened to the riverfront<\/a>. Just prior, Kansas City artist Dani Roma was commissioned to paint a mural in bold orange, blue and purple, \u201cWelcome to Berkley Riverfront\u201d on a shipping container at the entrance to the park.<\/p>\n

\"A A mural welcoming visitors to Berkley Riverfront Park was completed just before the new riverfront extension of the Kansas City streetcar was opened on May 18, 2026. Eric Adler The Kansas City Star <\/p>\n

On Memorial Day weekend, 100 graffiti artists gathered along the Riverfront Heritage Trail<\/a> to paint 40-foot long mural along a roughly 1.5-mile stretch of the river\u2019s levy wall. That same weekend, another mural of red and yellow daises went up on the corrugated gray wall of the Two Birds One Stone beer garden.<\/p>\n

\"Over Over Memorial Day weekend in 2026, Mo River Murals Fest, 100 graffiti artists taking part in the Mo River Murals Fest gathered along the Riverfront Heritage Trail to paint 40-foot sections of the river\u2019s flood wall covering over 1.5 miles. Eric Adler The Kansas City Star <\/p>\n

Aaron Plumb, PortKC\u2019s development manager, said there is a plan to add more color to the new color to the CPKC Pavillion, which is the final stop of along the streetcar line.<\/p>\n

Designed by a team that includes Burns & McDonnell, Zahner, the metal fabricators<\/a>, and KEM Studio<\/a>, the pavilion features and a reflective metal canopy inspired by the reflection and flow of the Missouri River.<\/p>\n

\"A A mural of flowers went up at the Two Birds One Stone beer garden on Memorial Day weekend, 2026. Eric Adler The Kansas City Star <\/p>\n

\u201cThis \u2018Rivercloud\u2019 sculpture coming in,\u201d Pierce said, \u201cwe think it\u2019s going to be talked about, not just short-term. But long-term, it\u2019s going to be something \u2014 people coming down \u2014 where you\u2019re doing something Instagram worthy, where you\u2019re taking photos, putting it on social media, talking about it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just highlights Kansas City. We want it to be warm, and welcoming and inclusive. And we think things like this make it not only a beautiful place \u2014 because you already see that with the river \u2014 but how do we enhance that? That\u2019s the thinking overall.\u201d<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Eric Adler<\/a><\/p>\n

The Kansas City Star<\/p>\n

Eric Adler, at The Star since 1985, has the luxury of writing about any topic or anyone, focusing on in-depth stories about people at both the center and on the fringes of the news. His work has received dozens of national and regional awards.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Memphis, Tennessee, artist Ben Butler called the moment on Friday morning \u201cterrifying.\u201d That\u2019s when, around 10 a.m., Butler,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":452758,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[442,498,499,500,501,156,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-452757","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-artsdesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/452757","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=452757"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/452757\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/452758"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=452757"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=452757"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=452757"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}