Sculpture’s meaning in hands of viewers By Holly Morris Assistant Editor

A gourd. Praying hands. Mother earth. A sampling of student reactions to the new fountain at the west end of the Mall, scheduled to be spurting within the next few weeks, indicates that nobody’s quite sure what they’re seeing.

“ I think it’s weird,” said Jeremiah Elliott, Business freshman, “but it reminds me of how we all have an individual uniqueness.”

But the Rev. John P. Schlegel, S.J., university president, is glad students are noticing.

“ It’s a piece of art, so it means something different to everyone,” Schlegel said. “It’s meant to be very hopeful, with hope rising for the next millennium.”

Business freshman Sarah Snyder agrees.

“ I think it’s really artistic and original,” Snyder said. “It seems religious.”

Marking the geographic end of the Mall as well as the end of Mall remodeling to the west, “Millennium Milestone of Hope” is a bronze sculpture by Timothy P. Schmalz.

Schmalz is a Canadian artist and creator of the St. Clare of Assisi sculpture now located in Creighton’s Jesuit Gardens.
The St. Clare sculpture similarly garnered attention last year, but that was because Creighton faculty and students were concerned about the sculpture’s position sprawled in the grass.

Within the next few weeks, “Millennium Milestone of Hope” will become a water feature. Twelve major spigots will shoot water, and the sculpture will be lit from underneath, Schlegel said, which should show its detail better.

“ I find it very spiritual,” Schlegel said. “I was and remain genuinely excited about the Mall’s development.”