Here’s The Story Behind The Massive Stix Sculpture in Nashville
By Meghan Kraft|Published February 16, 2022
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Meghan Kraft
Author
Meghan Kraft loves to travel the world, but she makes her home right here in Nashville, Tennessee. She holds a degree in English, and has worked in the digital marketing realm with companies such as Apartments.com, USA Today and HarperCollins Publishing.
If you ever find yourself driving through downtown Nashville, chances are you’re looking hard out the window at all the neon lights and quirky, country-inspired honkytonks that line the city’s downtown stretch. Just off Broadway, however, in the middle of Nashville’s largest downtown roundabout, you’ll find a quirky art installation known by locals as “the sticks,” and officially titled and stylized as “Stix.” We did some digging to find out the history of this fascinating installation, and it may give you a new appreciation for the art piece.
Downtown Nashville is full of beautiful art pieces and buildings, the Frist Museum boasts a beautiful location as well as a gallery of stunning artwork, and you’ll find a different kind of splendor down off Honkytonk Highway. Though the city may be in the southern region of the United States, an area less known for its museums, you’ll still find a streamlined offering of classic works for the art aficionado.
The "Stix" sculpture is on 8th Avenue and Korean Veterans Boulevard, located in the middle of the location’s roundabout. If you’ve ever had to travel into downtown from the Wedgewood-Houston area or from one end of the district to the next you have most likely had to maneuver through the roundabout.
The poles were first installed in the autumn of 2015, and they may suggest the romantic, whimsical illustrations of Dr. Seuss. At first, locals scratched their heads, but the story behind artist Christian Moeller’s inspiration adds depth and meaning to the piece.
Moeller was inspired by Native American artwork, more specifically the artwork of the tribes that once made their home in the Nashville area. The sculpture is not meant to be tied to any concrete Native American artwork, but the coloring and tone are both inspired by the area’s history.
The artwork is the most expensive public art piece in the city of Nashville and is made from red cedarwood. The area between the sticks is populated with grasses native to the area. Each pole sits in a 15-foot-deep hole that had to be drilled through the limestone that sits beneath the city.
The installation may conjure up the vision of arrows that have fallen from the sky, but it mainly is left up to interpretation. The 27 wood poles stretch 70 feet into the sky, and the tilted pieces add a thoughtful element of wild whimsy.
Have you driven by the Stix art installation in Nashville, Tennessee? Did you know the history behind its design? The contemporary design is a breath of fresh air for a town that prides itself on its rural roots.
What an interesting part of Nashville! The city is truly full of surprises, and this stunning piece by Christian Moeller, a German native, truly represents the heart and history of the area. The next time you’re driving through downtown make sure you take a loop around the city’s roundabout.
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