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YMCA of the Rockies: Art and Nature Inspire! Public Art Walking Tour
Item 5 of 8
This is a contributing entry for YMCA of the Rockies: Art and Nature Inspire! Public Art Walking Tour and only appears as part of that tour.Learn More.
Created by artist Jane DeDecker, this piece sits in a beautiful location with a perfect view of Mt. Ypsilon and the surrounding landscape. It was commissioned for the centennial celebration of the YMCA of the Rockies in 2007. Four kids are depicted wearing clothes from different periods throughout the 100 years of history of the YMCA of the Rockies, spelling out the letters Y, M, C, and A with their arms. The sculpture is so well loved that several YMCAs have had smaller versions made to give as gifts to donors or to sell in gift shops and a YMCA in Texas had another life size one made. What's your favorite "kid"? Why do you think the sculpture was placed here? What is your eye drawn to in the landscape? What "letter" can you see in the center of the mountain range? What letter shape can you make?

YMCA Kids Sculpture

Four children standing on a large log are depicted in this bronze sculpture spelling out the letters "Y", "M", "C", and "A" with their arms. The child on the far left is wearing clothes from 1907, when YMCA of the Rockies was founded. The other children are wearing clothes to represent other years throughout the history of the organization.

Mt. Ypslion and the Mummy Range

This image shows three, snowy mountain peaks of the Mummy Range, seen from YMCA of the Rockies property. Mt. Ypsilon is the center peak.

Sculptor Jane DeDecker aims to capture moments in time that convey an emotional message to the viewer. She focuses on the expressive nature of the human form. As a sculptor for over thirty-five years, DeDecker has developed a very painterly, expressive style. She first creates a piece with clay, manipulating the material as if it is paint and her hands are the brushes. Then, the pieces are cast in bronze, adding a sense of permanence to these otherwise small moments as she connects her pieces to the natural environment and human nature.

For more information on Jane DeDecker and her other projects, use the link below to visit her website.

Can you find the letters "LVH" on the sculpture? What could they stand for? The initials are for a woman named Laurie Van Horn who was friends with artist Jane DeDecker and was also the Marketing and Communications Director for YMCA of the Rockies at the time of the centennial celebration.

When looking at this piece, you can see the mountains of the Mummy Range in the background. The center one is called Mt. Ypsilon. Can you see the ice-covered "Y" formed by the crags in the side of the mountain? It is said that the founders of YMCA of the Rockies came to the area, saw the "Y" in the mountain, and decided that this was the perfect place for the western conference of the YMCA.

Jane DeDecker. Accessed September 26th 2020. https://janededecker.com/.