The sculpture 'Internal Combustion' by Douglas Gruizenga, is located at Michigan and Brady near the Dearborn Historical Museum.

If you like those art sculptures you see while driving through Dearborn (we do) you can thank the Dearborn Community Fund, the non-profit organization that provides resources to support recreational and cultural projects in Dearborn.

Twelve new sculptures are enhancing the landscape in east and west Dearborn along Michigan Avenue.

The artwork was installed through Dearborn’s Art in Public Places project as part of the Midwest Sculpture Initiative (MSI).

The Dearborn Community Fund (DCF) project has expanded since it was first initiated in 2009 when eight sculptures were placed around the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center.

“Public interaction and interest in the project provided the encouragement to host a new exhibit for the third year in a row,” said EmmaJean Woodyard, executive director of the DCF.

This is the second year that the East Dearborn Downtown Development Authority (EDDDA) and the West Dearborn Downtown Development Authority (WDDDA) are collaborating in the project, which has helped to expand the initiative and increase the number of sculptures from eight to 12.

Residents and visitors to Dearborn are encouraged to take a sculpture tour.

“The sculptures range from whimsical to serene, provocative to straight forward,” Woodyard noted. “Residents already have commented that the subject matter – such as pistons and horses that look like wild Mustangs – as well as the steel and aluminum materials used by the artists, are a great reflection of Dearborn and our automotive history.”

Artists whose work is exhibited in the 2011 Art in Public Places Project are from Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. All can be purchased for those interested, too.

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