SHINE!
Waupaca Community Sculpture Project 2025
Our free fused-glass workshops were supported in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts!
Shine With Us!
Our SHINE Fused-glass Tile Workshops have been completed. Thank you, Waupaca and beyond for creating all the incredible SHINE Tiles for our SHINE Community Sculpture Project! We couldn’t have done it without your creative spark.
Our community created over 170 original fused glass tiles, and now we have been working on the details to put them together with the framing and design, courtesy of the Waupaca Foundry.
Thanks to the Artist, Mary Beisner, for all her hard work! And thank you to all of the community members who toiled over their tiles, creating so many unique, colorful, and artistic pieces of individual fused-glass art!
April 11, 2025
Planning the next phases and eventual install and completion of this monumental community project. April 11, 2025
April 11, 2025
Presentation about the project by Eli Kallio of the Waupaca Foundry. April 11, 2025
Mike Hemmila and Eli Kallio April 11, 2025
Bev Crane standing next to the panels. April 11, 2025
April 11, 2025
April 11, 2025
Foundry members Mike Hemmila and Eli Kallio, Waupaca Parks and Rec Director Laura Colbert, and members of the Waupaca Community Arts Board viewing the four iron panels for the SHINE Community Sculpture Project. April 11, 2025
The Waupaca Foundry's Mike Hemmila and Eli Kallio giving the WCAB SHINE committee members all the info.
Explaining how each frame will go into the main frame and how the tiles will fit inside of each one.
These are the individual frames that will fit inside of the main frame panels.
Pallets of frames at the R&D building at the Waupaca Foundry. Each section weighs 250 pounds. Each frame will have 4 sections and be 8 feet tall each!
Eli Kallio explaining the details about adding precision screw holes into the frames. This is an incredible project. The Waupaca Foundry has been an amazing collaboration partner in this years long project!
The next step will be to rust the frames, so that they are uniform and will not streak or run. This will be done with salt water.
Exciting learning all about the process from the Waupaca Foundry's point of view. We can always count on them to take on a nearly impossible project!!!!
Waupaca Community Arts Board members at the Waupaca Foundry for the pouring of the iron structures for the SHINE Community Sculpture Project!
Pouring into the 3D printed molds.
Safety First!
Men at work!
These are the iron structures that will house the fused-glass tiles. This structure includes melted down railway from Waupaca back in the day!
Thank you to the Waupaca Foundry for their support in this project. We are so lucky to have a collaborator like this in our town!
These are the individual frames that will fit inside of the main frame panels.
Marci & Cheryl
These panels have been out in the elements getting weathered over the winter and early spring. April 11, 2025
The SHINE Sculpture has broke ground!!!!!!!
Sarah Timm, Marketing Director at the Waupaca Foundry. She was out doing lots of videos this am!
Install crew form Faulks Brothers and Waupaca Foundry. What a great group!!!
Footings being poured!
Here, you can see footings being poured with the help of Faulks Bros. and the Waupaca Foundry staff assisting. The process is difficult, but exciting.
Continuing the process…
As the footings are poured, each of the iron structures must be set before concrete dries.
Ready, Set, Go!
These Waupaca Community Arts Board members are set to go on placing each tile into its place. A detailed plan for where each tile would go was made so tiles were placed thoughtfully and with care. It is a beautiful sight to see when the sun is shining through. We cannot wait to have events in this space and share with the community all the hard work and collaboration that went into this project. We are grateful!
We are thrilled to finally have completed this year’s long Community Art Project! Many hands were needed to make this a reality. We could not have done it without the help of the Waupaca Foundry, the City of Waupaca, Mary Beisner, our community members, and more. Thank you to everyone who had a part in this project.
Pictured to the right is one of the finished sculpture panels presented by Laura Colbert, Waupaca Parks & Recreation Director.
The SHINE project is nearing its completion, thanks to the Waupaca Foundry, Faulks Brothers, and Waupaca Parks Department!
The design, creation of molds, and pouring of the frames was done during 2024.
The machining of the frames and the special tile holding frames have been completed.
The pre-rust process of all panels has been completed in the fall of 2024 through early spring of this year.
The WCAB team has selected the order that more than 125 tiles will be placed in the frames and which tiles will be held in reserve/on display at various city offices.
So, we are ready to go!
Tentative dates have been established to install the four 8-foot panels at Rotary Riverview Park. Each panel weighs over 1,200 pounds! Because of the weight of each panel, cranes will need to be used to install the panels.
Site prep: Friday, May 9, 2025
Install the panels: Monday, May 12, 2025
Rain Date to install: Monday, May 19, 2025
Once the frames are installed, the cement is set, and the ground is not too muddy, WCAB members and Foundry team will install the over 125 fused glass tiles created by members of our awesome community.
Following installation, plan to celebrate in June, and you are invited! Stay tuned for more details for the celebration event on our website and social media accounts.
Envisioning the Future…
The SHINE Sculpture space will be open for all to enjoy for the years to come! Bring friends and family to the park to have a picnic, bring your guitar and sing, do some yoga, or just hang out and enjoy!
We will be planning a few events to take place in August around the sculpture during ARTicipation Week 2025. Stay tuned!
Media Coverage
Mike Hemmila, Plant Manager 2/3 of the Waupaca Foundry and members of the Waupaca Community Arts Board are interviewed by WBAY Channel 2 News about the Shine Sculpture.
May 23, 2024
Waupaca County News article covering the details of the Shine Sculpture Project. Get the details of the iron pour to create the four panels that will hold the SHINE tiles created by community members.
May 30, 2024
Fox 11 News interview with various Waupaca Community Arts Board members describing the scope of the SHINE Project. Details of the iron pour into the 3D printed molds and more.
May 23, 2025
In this video, foundry workers are pouring into the 3D printed models. These structures will hold the fused-glass SHINE tiles! We can’t wait to see the tiles inside the models. It is going to be so beautiful, full of Waupaca beauty and history!
Waupaca Foundry’s Preliminary Sculpture Design
The Arts Board is so grateful for our partnership with The Waupaca Foundry on this special glass and metal Community Sculpture Project.
Our two-year Community Sculpture Project would not be possible without The Foundry’s professionalism, talent, and community spirit. Thank you!
We can’t wait to see this piece installed in downtown Waupaca in spring of 2025.
