On the banks of Bayou Petit Caillou in Chauvin Louisiana, surrounded by a non-descript chain link fence more than 100 concrete folk art sculptures, depict the likenesses of humans, angels and notable religious figures, most in the grasp of some sort of spiritual or physical struggle. In the year 2000, their creator, artist Kenny Hill, inexplicably abandoned the works and hasn’t been heard from since.
The Enigmatic Kenny Hill
A bricklayer by trade, the reclusive, nomadic artist Kenny Hill settled in Chauvin (pronounced show-van) Louisiana in 1988. Living out of a tent and later a small house of his own construction, Hill set to work creating a series of reinforced concrete sculptures and structures that reflected his view of the world and presumably his struggles in that world.
During the twelve years of their creation, Kenny Hill insisted that the sculptures were just for him, and regularly refused requests to photograph the works or publicize them. Deeply religious and committed to the work Kenny Hill declared his work a “story of salvation” for the local residents.
Kenny Hill’s Sculpture Garden
In the garden the artist is depicted carrying Christ’s cross, often with long hair and a beard, and on occasion with a bleeding heart. Toward the back of the garden a 45-foot tower (composed of 7,000 bricks) is covered in figures including cowboys, soldiers, God and the artist himself.
While many of the figures in artist Kenny Hill’s sculpture garden share the artist’s physical characteristics others appear to be angels, or religious figures. But regardless of the individual depicted most of the sculptures portray some sort of struggle or conflict, whether, physical, spiritual or societal. Some of the more complex pieces depict aliens or beings from another world, and still others contain passages of text that held meaning for the artist.
Deeply troubled and engaged in a dispute over ownership of the land on which the garden stands, in 2,000 Kenny Hill abandoned his sculptures and seemingly the religion that had inspired his life and work. He knocked the head off of his statue of Christ, left town and has not been heard from since.
The Kohler Foundation and Nicholls State University
Thanks to a generous grant from the Kohler Foundation after the artist’s departure, preservation and administration of the Chauvin Sculpture Garden has been assumed by the Nicholls State University Art Studio. Local residents and acquaintances of the artist who live nearby also keep an eye on the sculpture garden and often talk with visitors, providing a deeply personal account of the man responsible for the remarkable works of art in the midst of their community.
Chauvin is a quiet small town on the inky black waters of Bayou Petit Caillou. For the 3,400 residents of Chauvin, life consists mainly of fishing, shrimping and scratching out a living on a patch of land that is fast dwindling due to the ravages of coastal erosion. For most, the sculpture garden and its creator remain a mystery, but for those who knew the artist, they happily recount the story of the man who created something beautiful, if mystical, in their midst.
Glenn Kaufmann - Having moved every four years up to the age of 12, I've always been something of a restless soul ready to take on the next big thing. I ...
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