Meet the wildly creative team behind the new moose and crane roundabout sculptures

PARK CITY, Utah—A monumental moose and a devoted Sandhill crane will soon reside in the Jeremy Ranch roundabout, offering commuters and residents a daily encounter with the natural world—cast in steel and shaped by the hands of artists who see animals not just as subjects but as symbols of connection, story, and place.

The sculpture, called Neighbors, is the latest public art installation by Don Kennell and Lisa Adler of DKLA Design. The Santa Fe-based husband-and-wife team is known for their large-scale animal figures fabricated from corten and galvanized steel. The pair, who met in graduate school and have been artistic collaborators ever since will install the piece in June along Homestead Road and Rasmussen Road.

Adler and Kennell will visit Summit County April 22–26 to give presentations at local schools. They will visit Park City Day School on April 24 and Ecker Hill Middle School and Weilenmann School on April 25 to continue their commitment to connecting art to the community.

“Whenever we’re finalists for a project, we like to do a site visit and really feel the place,” Kennell said. “We research the local environment — and for us, that means the animals. Our work always centers around large animals because they tell stories, not just about themselves, but about us as humans.”

The moose and Sandhill crane chosen for the roundabout installation were inspired by the species living and nesting in Summit County. “These animals are your neighbors,” Adler said. “They’re part of the shared space that people come here to experience. We celebrate that relationship — however distant or subtle — between humans and wildlife.”

On one side of the roundabout, a 23-foot-tall moose will stand with its head lifted, seemingly sniffing the air. “The moose is just such a presence,” Kennell said. “Their size and confidence — that ability to stand their ground — is awe-inspiring. They’re undisturbed, even when a bear is around. That kind of ownership of space is something we wanted to capture.”

Opposite the moose, a Sandhill crane sits in a nest, flanked by two small chicks nestled between its wings — a scene both intimate and powerful. “Sandhill cranes return to Summit County to nest and raise their young,” Adler said. “And that parenting image — carrying their babies on their backs — felt like such a perfect metaphor for this neighborhood.”

Surrounded by schools, including Jeremy Ranch Elementary and Ecker Hill Middle School, the roundabout sees hundreds of families pass through daily. That informed the choice of species and the narrative embedded in the work. “There’s a real poetry in that,” Adler said. “You have human parents picking up their children, school buses coming through — and right there, this sculpture mirrors that moment of care, protection, and learning.”

The sculpture’s form was also shaped by community feedback. After early concept sketches were released, the artists heard from a wildlife biologist and parent at Jeremy Ranch Elementary who suggested focusing on the nesting crane. “That moment opened things up for us,” Adler said. “A standing crane didn’t feel quite right, especially at this scale. But a nesting crane, with babies — that clicked.”

The materials used — corten and galvanized steel — are deliberate, referencing the mining, farming and ranching legacy of Summit County. “We want our work to reflect not just the animals but the place,” Kennell said. “That steel — you see it in old equipment around here. And the way corten reflects the light, it changes throughout the day. It can be silver in the morning, pink at sunset, and rust-colored in the rain. It animates the sculpture.”

Though the sculptures are static, the roundabout provides a dynamic context. “People are always in motion around the work,” Kennell said. “That animates it. The moose, especially, will seem like it has a pulse — like it’s alive.”

Their first major collaboration — a 1995 interactive “art car” commissioned by Art Matters in New York — toured the U.S., inviting strangers to take photos with the mobile sculpture, which the artists then mailed back as postcards. “It was about sparking joy and community out of surprise,” Adler said. “That’s still our mission.”

The goal remains the same in their sculptures: to bring people into relationship with their surroundings. “Public art can become a defining part of a place,” Adler said. “We want this work to feel like it belongs — to the land, to the light, to the people who pass it every day. Over time, you collect these small moments: snow gathering on the crane’s wings, the sun lighting up the moose’s eyes. And those moments become stories.”

The sculpture will be transported in parts — six for the moose alone — and assembled onsite in the roundabout. “It’s serious work,” Kennell said. “Thousands of pounds of steel pounded into curves, brought to life with force, fire, and care. And when it’s all together, it tells a story of effort and reverence — for nature, for community, for this place.”

Though installation is still weeks away, the artists are already thinking about what the piece will mean to those who live nearby. “We hope it becomes a part of people’s lives,” Adler said. “A parent talking to a child about the moose. A student looking for the chicks on the crane. These creatures are powerful symbols — and we want them to serve as a daily reminder that we share this land, that we’re connected, and that there’s beauty in that.”

 To learn more about DKLA Design, visit their Instagram and website.