To promote its homebuilding and homeownership efforts, Habitat for Humanity of Northern Fox Valley plans to install 40 artist-painted sculptures around East Dundee, West Dundee, Carpentersville and Elgin.
“We are promoting the importance of caring for our planet Earth and Habitat’s commitment to this with our 28-home affordable housing Net Zero neighborhood, Carter Crossing (in Carpentersville),” Habitat’s Director of Development Susan Fritz said.
“The (art) event offers us a fantastic opportunity to speak about the impact on our community. The beauty of these sculptures will be eye-catching and with the intent of people being directed towards the Habitat website (where they) will learn about the upcoming projects we have.”
Habitat is to break ground for Carter Crossing this spring, Fritz said. The $12 million project will span four years, with seven Net Zero homes built every year through 2029, according to the Habitat website.
For the first 13, the nonprofit has partnered with Nicor Gas and the Southern Co. to equip the single-family homes with a combination of renewable, electric and natural gas technologies.
Fritz said the idea of marrying the art project with the development comes from similar efforts with which she was involved, including sculpture events she organized in Naperville over eight years in the 2000s. The first featured 60 hand-painted baby giraffe sculptures in 2001 in honor of the Naperville United Way’s 50th anniversary.
As will be the case with the Habitat initiative, each sculpture was precast and local artists commissioned to come up with unique ways to decorate them.
“That won the hearts of the community and made way for the next seven years of sculpture events (in Naperville, and still occurs every summer),” Fritz said.
Fritz organized a similar art sculpture event at Oakbrook Center in 2011. That one featured large frogs, garden benches, birdbaths and fine art pieces spread throughout the open air mall in Oak Brook.
Professional artists and sponsors are being sought for the Habitat project, which will feature four environmentally-themed designs, Fritz said. Ten of each will be produced.
Three of the molds — a butterfly garden bench, an Earth globe and a bumblebee birdbath — will cost $3,500 to sponsor. A bumblebee playhouse is a little more expensive at $5,000. Artists chosen to decorate them will be paid a stipend of between $500 and $1,200 per piece.
Artist applications are due in mid-February. A Habitat committee will evaluate the applications and choose the artists who will participate.
“From there, sculpture sponsors will be able to see a portfolio of the artists we have chosen and select which one they would like to work with to develop an idea for the painted sculpture,” Fritz said. “The designs, due in March, must represent the event theme of environmental preservation. Once artists work with their sponsors to develop an idea of what they would like to paint, their ideas are submitted to Habitat for approval.”
The completed sculptures are to be revealed at a party May 22 at The Haight in downtown Elgin, she said. The pieces will be installed in summer 2025 and then auctioned off at a gala event that autumn at The Highland Loft in Elgin.
Sponsorships cover the cost of production and events associated with their placement. Funds not used for the pieces or that get collected through the auction go to Habitat. They hope to raise $150,000 for its homeownership program, Fritz said.
Artists who want to apply to participate should complete the application found at forms.gle/G1vv9bceoAhjXkue9. For more information or to become a sponsor, go to habitatnfv.org/builds-events/home-planet-earth.
Mike Danahey is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
