Strapped patron sells; Kirkland art vanishes
Robert Frost has taken the well-traveled road out of town and the Nike Girl is running close behind him.
In fact, four beloved bronze sculptures — including "Robert Frost" and "Nike Girl" — have been removed from sites around Kirkland over recent months as one of the city's most prominent and enigmatic art patrons struggles to pay creditors.
Bill Ballantine has already sold the Frost piece and is trying to sell the other three sculptures at the Nedra Matteucci Gallery in Santa Fe, N.M.
The loss is significant for a city that prides itself on its large and popular collection of whimsical public art, most of it loaned pieces.
Last year, when Ballantine announced plans to sell what is perhaps Kirkland's most famous sculpture, the "Puddle Jumpers" in Marina Park, determined residents raised $125,000 — an amount the city matched — and "Puddle Jumpers" stayed.
Although the four smaller pieces have not created the same stir, the city has announced plans to create a Cultural Council and has put out a call for applicants.
The council would promote strategic planning and development of the arts, advise the city on cultural matters and help raise money to buy art and ensure concrete pedestals do not remain empty for long.
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As well as the Frost piece, which greeted people arriving at City Hall, and "Nike Girl," which disappeared from Lake Street this month, Ballantine has also removed "The Valentine" from near the Senior Center in Peter Kirk Park and "The Rescue" from inside City Hall.
"The Rescue" and "Puddle Jumpers" are by renowned Santa Fe artist Glenna Goodacre, while the other works for sale are by Colorado artist George Lundeen.
City officials have met with Ballantine, concerned he might remove some of his six remaining bronze sculptures, including "Cow and Coyote" at Central Way and Lake Street, the "Water Bearers" in David E. Brink Park and "Bounding Muledeer" on Lake Washington Boulevard.
Ballantine has told officials he has no immediate plans to sell any more pieces.
Despite the losses, Kirkland's public-art scene remains among the most vibrant in the country, with close to 30 sculptures brightening downtown parks and streets and a dozen more gracing private land — a legacy that Ballantine is widely credited with sparking more than a dozen years ago.
"Bill Ballantine has major significance as a catalyst behind bringing a public-art presence to the city," as well as inspiring temporary art exhibits to visit, said Lynn Stokesbary, the assistant city manager.
But a combination of the dot-com crash and a drawn-out divorce have left Ballantine negotiating with creditors. In divorce papers, Ballantine stated he is selling the art to pay off debts, although he is finding that the art market has fallen sharply over recent years.
The former Ballantine family home at Kirkland's Champagne Point is also on the market, estimated in court papers to be worth close to $2 million, less than the debt owed on the house and down from an estimated $3.2 million value last year.
"Like everyone else, I am going through some reorganizing of my finances," Ballantine said. "I don't want to be as heavily into art. I want to be more liquid."
Ballantine, an ebullient, intensely private man, comes from a newspaper family in Colorado and moved to Seattle in the 1970s after serving in the Vietnam War. He studied political science at the University of Washington before publishing the now-defunct alternative newspaper, the Seattle Sun, for two years.
After his publishing stint, Ballantine met Kirkland developer Don Stabbert at a party, and he joined Stabbert in numerous downtown real-estate ventures. He moved to Kirkland around 1980.
Ballantine said his interest in art was sparked by his grandparents but that his tastes have matured from representational art to abstract art over the years. He hopes the city's tastes have similarly developed, and that, perhaps, his sculptures of people and animals will be replaced with something more edgy.
When Ballantine loaned his first artwork to Kirkland, there was only a single piece of sculpture on public display, Stokesbary said. That number grew rapidly, as did the number of downtown art galleries.
These days, 17 galleries are listed in the telephone book and Kirkland is established as an art destination.
"We have been growing and tumbling until we reached what we are today," said Luanne Erikson, co-president of the Kirkland Gallery Association and director of the Howard/Mandville Gallery. "We have definitely been helped by the sculpture that was brought in by Bill Ballantine."
Erikson echoes Ballantine's hopes that perhaps another benefactor will step forward.
Public sculpture like that in downtown Kirkland helps people who may never visit a gallery engage with art, said Jason Huff, artistic director of the Kirkland Arts Center. "It is an essential part of our culture," he said.
But aside from "Puddle Jumpers," the city has bought just four works. The remainder are on loan from galleries or have been donated by local families, businesses and nonprofits. Many of the works can be removed on short notice.
Some galleries display works on sidewalks until they are sold, at which time they are replaced. The city spends about $10,000 each year cleaning the sculptures and paying for insurance and installation costs.
"I think Kirkland lends itself to art with the lake and the low-rise buildings," Ballantine said. "Art in Kirkland has a national reputation."
Ballantine said that he is pleased, in some respects, that people have been asking him about his own disappearing works.
"It is nice knowing that they have a hook or have an impact," he said.
Nick Perry: 206-515-5639 or nperry@seattletimes.com.