By Kari Dickinson, photos by Sarah Maughan and Sirtaj Grewal

On July 26, a new Bucky on Parade statue, “Honor the Air, Land, and Water,” will debut at the Memorial Union kicking off UW–Madison’s 175th Anniversary celebration. The statue, featuring iconography that represents the university’s past, present, and future, was painted by Art Professor John Hitchcock, with assistance from UW–Madison student Kaylee Herrmann, an undergraduate with the Art Department.

Hitchcock says he considered “the importance of place, being grounded in oneself, and our quest to discover more about who we are as a people” in developing this new work.

Check out the photos below to witness the transformation of a blank Bucky statue into an artistic masterpiece.

In late May, Bucky was delivered to Hitchcock’s studio in the UW–Madison Art Lofts. The first step was to thoroughly wash the statue to prepare it for painting.