May 22, 2008

Schuler sculpture set at Ritzville Library

By Jennifer Larsen

News editor

A family legacy will be born this weekend when a metal sculpture is unveiled at the Ritzville Public Library on Saturday, May 24, during a 3 p.m. ceremony for replacing the cornerstone.

The sculpture, which was commissioned by the Wagon Train Descendants’ Association, is of local contractor Shontz Schuler, who built several buildings in the area including the library.

Local artisan Sherryl Evans, great-granddaughter of Schuler, designed the sculpture while her husband, Vince, did the metal work.

The unveiling is the culmination of countless hours of research, gathering materials and redesigns for Vince and Sherryl, Ritzville High School grads of 1954 and 1959 respectively.

In preparation for the sculpture, a foundation was poured and concrete blocks made by Schuler salvaged from a warehouse building were placed at the corner of the library in the last few days.

According to Sherryl, her great-grandfather built the first house on the Bill Harder place by transporting the block forms on a train from Keystone and hauling the forms onsite to pour.

Evans also noted that Schuler helped downtown rebuild after the devastating fire in the late 1880s. There was enough work for Shuler and his sons, but when available work dwindled all but one son – Harry, who is Sherryl’s grandfather – left town.

The sculpture reflects Schuler’s trade as a carpenter with an antique metal square, blueprints for the library and a metal toolbox filled with antique carpenter tools. The toolbox belonged to a family who had two homes built by Schuler and Sons.

Using one 4x4-foot sheet of stainless steel, one 4x4-foot sheet of steel, one 3x2.5-foot sheet of textured steel and some oxidized steel on hand, Sherryl and Vince have created a slightly larger-than-life sculpture of a Ritzville pioneer and family legend.

“(Vince)’s been over in that shop until midnight for the last couple months,” Sherryl said.

Vince and Sherryl are grateful to Steve Taylor for access to his shop. All he wanted was to see the day-to-day process, Sherryl added.

When it comes time to design a sculpture, Sherryl explained that although her role in the design process isn’t necessarily easy, Vince is the one who wields the big equipment to form details such as jackets, shoulders and the face.

For the body, Vince backed up against paper that was attached to a wall while Sherryl traced his outline.

“We did that with Pioneer Woman. Pioneer Woman is me,” Sherryl said, referring to the metal sculpture near the Interstate 90 exit 221.

For earlier pieces of artwork, Sherryl would draw the design on cardboard and cut it out, making patterns from the pieces.

She used a large amount of foamboard for the Schuler sculpture, which she said was easier to cut and stiff enough to keep its shape.

Once the patterns are made, Vince cuts the metal from the patterns and Sherryl reconstructs the prototype as a guide for welding the sculpture together. For this sculpture, she also enlarged the patterns and provided detailed descriptions for construction.