Field of Corn (with Osage Orange Trees)

Installed October 30, 1994, this field of 109 6-foot tall concrete corn cobs was designed by Malcolm Cochran and commissioned by the Dublin Arts Council. Each corn cob is designed and placed at various orientations to replicate the uniqueness of corn, from shape to kernels. Provoking mixed feelings from the public, the art installation has grown from a slighted oddity to a quirky roadside attraction. Intended to pay homage to the agricultural past of Ohio, a former lead producer of corn, Cochran has mentioned that sculpture intentionally replicates the look of a cemetery “to commemorate the passing of an agrarian way of life.”

Located at 4995 Rings Road, Dublin, Ohio, the plot of land was donated by Sam and Eulalia Frantz, which is now named Sam and Eulalia Frantz Park. The Frantz were farmers on this plot of land, and Sam Frantz was known for being a leader in growing corn hybrids. A 1946 Worthington newspaper wrote of Frantz receiving an award for “distributing better hybrids to farmers ….and produc[ing] Ohio seed continuously” since 1936 and called him a “local corn expert.”

While Sam passed away before the concrete Field of Corn was installed, his wife Eulalia attended the dedication ceremony in 1994. Cochran was well aware of Ohio’s connection to corn and agriculture, which inspired the design, but learned of the Frantz connection after he submitted his design. There is now a plaque by the sculpture that credits Frantz as the farmer at the site from 1935-1963 and a well known developer of hybrid corn seeds.

Malcolm Cochran, Professor Emeritus at the Ohio State University, is still active in the art community. Cochran has been an active sculpture artist since the late 1970s and continues to be involved in and around Columbus, Ohio. He has had exhibits and sculptures featured in various places nationally and globally including New York, Vermont, the Netherlands and Finland. The Dublin Arts Council gave the location of the plot of land and began a juried art competition to find their designer. Cochran entered not knowing much about the exact history of the plot but noticed the hedge of Osage Orange Trees and figured he was seeing two divided farm plots.

In 1993 Dublin, Ohio was in the midst of transitioning from a farm town to a suburban dwelling with highways and industry. The price tag of the installation was $70,000, which some taxpayers cringed at, though many have come to embrace the artwork. At over 25 years old, the corn cobs have since become a mostly-loved part of Dublin.

The Field of Corn (with Osage Orange Trees) was the third installation from the Dublin Art in Public Places program, which now boasts a collection of over 20 permanent sculptures and including on-loan pieces is worth $3.8 million. Cochran has noted that Dublin officials wanted the selected art installation to be something people drove-by vs. interacted with, although hundreds stop to climb and photograph the corn. Weddings have occurred with the 109 corn cobs as witnesses, as well as prom pictures that embrace the uniqueness of the site.

Art in Public Places, Dublin Arts Council. Accessed July 12 2021. https://dublinarts.org/visual-arts/publicart/.

Cochran, Malcolm. About, malcolmcochran.com. Accessed July 12 2021. http://malcolmcochran.com/?page_id=121.

Field of Corn (with Osage Orange Trees), Dublin Arts Council. Accessed July 12, 2021. https://dublinarts.org/featured-items/fieldofcorn/.

Gordon, Ken. "From oddity to cherished Dublin icon, ‘Field of Corn’ celebrates 25 years." The Columbus Dispatch (Columbus) September 28th 2019. https://www.dispatch.com/news/20190928/from-oddity-to-cherished-dublin-icon-field-of-corn-celebrates-25-years.

"Sam Frantz Hybrid Corn Grower Honored." The Worthington News (Worthington) March 21 1946.