| Play | |
| Artist: | Lars Jonker |
| Year: | 2002 |
| Museum: | Hendricks Park |
| Mapframe: | yes |
| Mapframe-Zoom: | 13 |
Play is an abstract sculpture by Lars Jonker.[1] It is located in Hendricks Park, in the historic Bates-Hendricks neighborhood, south of downtown Indianapolis, Indiana.
The painted-metal sculpture consists of two large, curvilinear forms facing each other.[2] One curved form has a yellow ball and the other has a purple ball attached near their pointed extremities. A blue ball rests between the two curves on a metal platform that encompasses both arcs.
Lars Jonker, a local steel artist at the nearby Wheeler Arts Community, created Play for Hendricks Park, as part of the park's ongoing development.[3] It was commissioned by Keep Indy Beautiful in 2002.[4]
Jonker moved from his hometown of Wichita, Kansas to Indianapolis in 1998. Upon relocation, he worked as a designer for Danish Inspirations, a furniture company. He started welding after gaining experience at Danish Inspirations working on prototypes.[5]
The sculpture was installed in Hendricks Park, a collaborative project between the Bates-Hendricks Neighborhood Association, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Baker & Daniels, Eli Lilly and Company, and Southeast Neighborhood Development that began in 2000 and was completed in 2002.[3] Despite occasional vandalism and some restoration, the sculpture remains in the park, on Madison Avenue, just south of downtown Indianapolis.[2] This small park in the Bates-Hendricks neighborhood is operated by Indy Parks and owned by the City of Indianapolis.[3] [6]