FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | June 25, 2025
Shelbyville, IN — Yesterday morning, a long-anticipated addition to the Blue River Trail was officially completed with the installation of the Shelby Sundial, a permanent, interactive public art piece that enriches both the natural and cultural landscape of the trail. Conceived as the missing “sun” in Shelbyville’s existing Solar System Planet Sculpture Walk, the sundial marks a significant milestone in creative placemaking and honors the artistic legacy of Shelby County.
The Solar System Planet Sculpture Walk, established in 2018 by The daVinci Pursuit in partnership with the City of Shelbyville, features planetary sculptures proportionally spaced along the Blue River Trail, beginning at the Big Blue River Trailhead near Knauf Greenway and ending at Blue River Memorial Park. Each sculpture was painted by members of the Shelby Art Guild Association, and paired with original poems by writers from Brick Street Poetry Inc. in Zionsville, Indiana.
While each planet had its place, a sculptural element for the sun had never been designed—until now. The Shelby Sundial transforms what was once an overlooked circular paved section of the trail into a dynamic destination where science, time, and artistry converge.
Thermoplastic foundation art was installed in May 2024 to prepare the space. The sundial’s gnomon (shadow-casting device)—crafted in 2025 by Ignition Arts, LLC—was designed by Laura Land, a Blue River Community Foundation team member and Waldron, Indiana, resident.
“Public art has the power to turn overlooked spaces into meaningful places,” Land said. “In designing the Shelby Sundial, we wanted to honor not just the natural cycles of time and space, but also the artistic legacy of Roland Hobart—a visionary Austrian-American artist who lived and worked in Shelbyville from the late 1960s through the 1980s.”
Hobart’s creative fingerprints remain etched into Shelbyville’s identity, with murals, prints, and sculptures that once animated community spaces including Morrison Park and L.S. Ayres. In tribute to his legacy, several of Hobart’s original pieces—donated from the Butler Morin Collection—are now on display at the Grover Center: Museum and Historical Society (open Wed–Sat, 10am–4pm, free admission).
The Shelby Sundial was made possible through the leadership of the Blue River Community Foundation (BRCF) and is part of its ongoing Arts & Culture Initiative. The project received generous support through the Lilly Endowment Inc.’s GIFT VIII Initiative, with additional funding from:
Noblesville Creates
Indiana Arts Commission, with support from the State of Indiana and the National Endowment for the Arts
MIBOR REALTOR® Association
Simons Foundation, as part of the In the Path of Totality Initiative with the Indiana University Center for Rural Engagement
The City of Shelbyville Parks & Recreation Department also provided site permissions and coordination to bring the project to life.
“Blue River Community Foundation continues to lead through creative and impactful investment in Shelbyville,” said Mayor Scott Furgeson. “The Shelby Sundial is more than public art—it’s a statement about who we are, what we value, and how we honor both the past and future of our community. I’m proud to support their vision.”
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To learn more about the Shelby Sundial and BRCF’s Arts & Culture work, visit www.blueriverfoundation.com/arts-culture
Visit the Shelby Sundial, in person, at the Big Blue River Trailhead near the Knauf Greenway entrance to the Blue River Trail.