New art pieces are being installed this week in downtown St. Joseph for the 2018 Sculpture Walk.

St. Joseph Allied Arts Council Executive Director Teresa Fankhauser said the sculptures chosen this year were created by artists from California, Washington D.C., New Jersey, Minnesota, Missouri and more.

“This year, we have 15 sculptures, which is a couple less than we had last year, but we only bring in based on what money we have raised to support this, because this is (an) all donor and sponsor based program,” Fankhauser said. “But the 15 we brought in are stellar and some of the biggest pieces that we’ve ever had, so it’s really exciting to see these great big pieces.”

Tyler Kimball is the owner of Monarch Glass Studio in Kansas City. Kimball’s piece, “Glass Towers,” was installed Wednesday afternoon at 9th Street and Francis Street.

“They are based on architecture where these pillars are normally the entryways… (they) kind of exist to prop something up and invite people in with sort of a grander feeling so it’s really nice that these are located here at kind of the entrance of St. Joe’s downtown,” Kimball said. “These were made sort of early on in my studio in Kansas City so it’s kind of the entryway of the process of my studio being built and what can be done with glass installation.”

Kimball said the installation, which includes green and blue glass tube cane, also uses solar panels and light sensors.

“They will come on once dusk hits, so during the day, the natural light of the sun, illuminates these beautiful colors that the glass holds and then, during the night, they illuminate from within,” Kimball said.

The Sculpture Walk begins at 6:15 p.m. on Friday at 8th and Felix Streets.

Brochures are available at various businesses downtown and include a map of where the sculptures are located and a ballot to vote for the People’s Choice Award winner. The sculptures remain in place for a year and voting for the People’s Choice Award closes January 31, 2019.