To honour Bob Hunter's relationship between music and the listener, a new sculpture has found a great seat near the Meridian Place stage.
The Horn and The Heart was installed at the gathering place in downtown Barrie Friday morning in honour of the late Hunter, a notable member of Barrie’s business and arts community.
The City of Barrie and the Barrie Public Art Committee worked together to bring the project to life just in time for the local Culture Days celebration.
The work was created by Hillsdale artist John McEwen, who was on-hand for the sculpture placement.
McEwen said that he and Lafontaine Iron Werks had worked on the project for just over a year. He explained how it was made.
“I did the two horns while Lafontaine did the outer part," he said. "The horns are the most eccentric and intuitive, and one of those things where it is harder to instruct someone to do than to do yourself. It involves a technique that I’ve been developing for a number of years now.”
The project was originally launched through a donation from the Hunter family and matching funds from his friends as well as community members.
In 2019, the public art committee announced a national competition for proposals. McEwen’s was selected on the strength of its concept and design, foregrounding two essential elements: the symbolic heart, based on music and the emotional core of the work, and specific recognition of Hunter by means of his chosen instrument: the trumpet.
McEwen says it's a tricky process attempting to honour someone after their death.
“A memorial is an interesting problem, because you can either commemorate the person as a character, or commemorate what they did," he said. "Bob Hunter had a vision that one of the most important things in his life was the relationship between the performer and the audience.
“Bob came from a musical background and music is one of those things that can bring those two parts together like nothing else can," McEwan added.
Stephannie Schlichter, the city's director of economic and creative development, said The Horn and The Heart “is a great way to kick off Culture Days."
“Public art is so important to creating community and sense of space, so we’re really happy to see this being installed today," she said.
Hunter was an active member of the Barrie Chamber of Commerce, serving as president in 1968, and the Barrie Rotary Club.
He attended Barrie Central Collegiate, where he played trumpet with the concert band, led by W.A. Fisher.
Hunter developed a lifelong passion for performing music and played in several bands, including the Barrie Concert Band, the Skyliners, and The Bob Hunter Band. He felt strongly that there should be an outdoor facility near Barrie’s waterfront where people could gather and enjoy live music.
This year, Culture Days is extending beyond the traditional annual weekend of events to a more inclusive and interactive four-week schedule of activities, from Sept. 25 to Oct. 25.
For a list of Culture Days programming, including self-guided public art tours, click here.
