Brilliant. Colorful. Captivating. Inspiring.

These are just a few of the adjectives that may come to mind when you preview the sculptures in progress for Stars and Stripes Park.

New photos from the artists’ studio reveal beautiful star-shaped installations in advanced stages of fabrication for the upcoming park project. The sculptures are made of gleaming metal, seemingly free-floating — yet sturdily braced by understated base and support struts.

Each face of the geometric shapes is perforated with a multitude of shapes. From out of these shapes, multicolored lights project beams outward onto all the stars’ surroundings. The shapes are cut into patterns out of sheer metal and range from simple stars, planes and rank insignia to various symbols representing branches of the armed forces.

There are also thoughtful quotes from veterans and first responders. One of the briefer messages reads,

“I JOINED BECAUSE IT WAS MY PATH. I DON’T WANT PEOPLE TO THANK ME.”

Other quotes are more extensive in length. One such quote reads,

“COURAGE IN THAT SITUATION IS GETTING UP EVERY DAY AND PUTTING ON THE UNIFORM AND DOING YOUR JOB LIKE YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO, WHETHER YOU WANT TO OR NOT. IT’S KNOWING THAT YOU’RE GOING TO EXPERIENCE SOME DANGER WHILE YOU’RE WORKING AND JUST ACCEPTING THAT FACT. IT’S CONTINUING TO DO WHAT MUST GET DONE. AND TO COME FORWARD WITH MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES REGARDLESS OF STIGMA … WELL, THAT’S COURAGE ALSO. AT SOME POINT, IF YOU STOP TAKING CARAE OF YOURSELF AND YOU CAN’T DO THE JOB, THEN YOU’RE GOING TO LET OTHER PEOPLE DOWN AT A REALLY CRITICAL TIME.”

Between the soon-to-be-iconic styling of the different stars and their deeper, more personal meanings, these sculptures are shaping up to be an inspiring addition to the future Stars and Stripes Park. The pleasing array of colors from the internally amounted lighting adds emotional impact to each star, offering a vivid mix of oranges, pinks, blues, reds and golds.

The stars will be installed in a particularly patriotic area of the park, positioned to complement a distinctive “waving flag” sculpture. These individual pieces will all add up to a meaningful experience that we can’t wait for you to enjoy.