City acquires art for Ranger Station Park

Sedona News – The city of Sedona recently purchased and installed the sculpture Stormy Bay at the Ranger Station Park at 250 Brewer Rd. The monumental 11-foot horse sculpture will welcome park users to the space, which is currently under construction with the exterior features, including a walking path and wooden playground, complete by this summer.

The city purchased Stormy Bay, a rustic piece fabricated from old farm machinery parts by artist Dixie Jewett, from Peggy Lanning, who was founder and owner of the Turquoise Tortoise and Lanning Galleries, as well as who created First Fridays and the Sedona Gallery Association. These accolades granted her a Lifetime Achievement Mayor’s Arts Award in 2017.

“I received a call that Stormy Bay was for sale at the perfect time — just as the city was planning what elements would be featured at the park that would incorporate Sedona’s arts and cultural history. Since horses were the main means of transportation when the Ranger Station was built in 1917 and this is a rustic sculpture made from sustainable repurposed parts, this acquisition couldn’t have been more serendipitous. I am so happy to have Stormy Bay be the first of hopefully many pieces of art installed on this historic property,” said Arts and Culture Specialist Nancy Lattanzi.

“It was my honor to contribute to the arts community in Sedona over my 40-year career and I am thrilled that my cherished horse, Stormy Bay, will live on in her new home for the public to enjoy for many years to come,” said Lanning.

“I’m thrilled that my mother’s legacy in the Sedona arts community can be memorialized in this important way. Over decades, people stopped by our home to view the horse in the front yard. Now, Stormy Bay will be viewable to so many more people. The Lanning family would like to give special thanks to the city of Sedona for their dedication to public art,” said Kimber Lanning, Peggy’s daughter.