The delivery of Niki de Saint Phalle’s six-ton sculpture La Cabeza kicked off the installation of “Niki in the Garden” at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis. The Belleville News-Democrat caught up with Juan Arcuelo, who brought the huge sculpture from Chicago on a flatbed truck:
There was a six-ton skull rolling down the interstate Friday morning from Troy to St. Louis. The Missouri Botanical Garden is getting ready for an outdoor exhibition of work by artist Niki de Saint Phalle. One of her pieces, La Cabeza, is a six-ton mosaic skull that was hauled to the gardens Friday on a flatbed semi. It drew a few looks as it traveled from the Chicago area on the back the truck driven by Juan Arcuelo, of Elgin.
He stopped in Troy on Thursday night and had to avoid downtown St. Louis and rush hour with the oversized load. He traveled from Troy to Interstate 255 and then across the Jefferson Barracks Bridge near Columbia before looping back up to the gardens.
The exhibit runs from April 27 until Halloween.
(Photo: Steve Nagy / BND)