Ruth

Ruth is an original work created in conjunction with the founding of the Toledo Botanical Gardens (originally the Crosby Gardens) in 1962. Artist Lavern E. "Ernie" Moll was a Northwest Ohio native, born in Wauseon who was teaching in the Art Department at the University of Toledo at the time of this work's creation. He later chaired the Art Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he taught sculpture for over 20 years. "Ruth" is a vibrant depiction fo a young girl lifting her arms to this sky surrounded by a forest of trees. It consists of welded steel in distinct curved forms resulting from their reuse, giving the final sculpture a gestural, almost hand-drawn quality and consistent patina from over 60 years on site.