On October 5, 2023 The Golden Spike Monument sculpture was unveiled to the public at Ashland - The Henry Clay Estate in Lexington, KY. Proceeding the celebration the commissioning organization Spike150 Foundation took the artwork on the road for the eastern multi-city/state whistle stop tour “Driving of the Spike 2023 Whistle Stop Road Show”. The tour culminated with another celebration at the Utah State Capitol front steps on October 23-24, 2023 completing the “Driving of the Spike 2023 Whistle Stop Road Show”. There will be a Central Pacific ”Driving of the Spike” tour spring of 2024. The installation of the sculpture will be at The Golden Spike Park at Reeder Ranch in Brigham City, Utah summer of 2024.
Giving Faces to the Faceless /
After the culmination of three years of research and work, The Golden Spike Monument was “done” and ready to tell the story of the building of the transcontinental railroad. The 43’ tall bas relief sculpted railroad spike gives faces to the faceless through the intricately gilded gold leaf and depicts images of the unheralded story of those who labored to build the railroad, as well as the irrevocable impact the project had on the indigenous communities. The “wedding of the rails” celebration connecting Eastern and Western United States took place with the driving of the “golden spike” at Promontory Summit in Utah in 1869 revolutionizing travel forever.
Ascentiate Dedication Remarks /
“Ascentiate” Dedication Remarks
July 27, 2018
“After a year of intense work alongside my amazing wife, assistants and the wonderful memorial board, I stand here today, honored and humbled to have been entrusted with the creation of this memorial. That I have been allowed to use my creative gift in some small way, to help facilitate healing and closure makes this moment uniquely special for me…and I am very grateful.
This entire memorial site, infused with beauty, is intended as a place of reflection and healing. It is intended as a place of remembrance, and it is also intended to be a place of beauty. The beauty and power of fine-art communicates a multitude of meanings to each of us individually. To me, this place communicates that beauty can arise from ugliness. It communicates that a diverse community can come together and produce a positive and uplifting response to a horrific and mystifying event…and, to me, the great universal power, unexplainably embedded within art, leads me to the supernatural source of that power, and in this, I find unshakeable resolve and peace beyond understanding.
My prayer today is that this memorial fulfills the purposes for which it was created. For wrestling and healing… for questioning and closure… for grieving and for peace… for strength and love and for times of sweet reflection.”