Art advisory group recommends updating name of bison sculpture

MOOSE JAW — A life-size steel bison sculpture that the City of Moose Jaw purchased to honour an animal that once roamed the prairies in the millions will have its name updated.

City council purchased the sculpture from artist Bill Keen in October 2022 based on a recommendation from the public art committee. The city then installed the artwork in July 2023, completed landscaping at the Tourism Moose Jaw (TMJ) office that August and installed a plaque in October.

In the summer of 2024, TMJ held an online contest that asked residents to name the 203-kilogram (450-pound) sculpture.

After acquiring over 80 suggestions, the organization narrowed the entries to four and brought the selections to the public art committee (PAC), with the groups choosing the suggestion of Blaze.

“… the name Blaze was chosen because our bison stands in the blaze of the sun under endless prairie skies,” Tourism Moose Jaw wrote on Facebook at the time. “The same sun that warmed the herds of bison that once roamed this land now shines on him!”

During its September 2024 meeting, the PAC — in collaboration with TMJ — agreed to officially name the bison sculpture Blaze.

However, Mr. Keen expressed his concern to the city that he and his wife had not been consulted on the name. He pointed out that, contrary to what a council report said, he had not even been included in reviewing the entries or choosing a moniker.

The public art committee addressed his concern during its March meeting, with member Donna Fritzke, TMJ’s executive director, saying she met with Keen and he was pleased and “perfectly fine” that the sculpture’s name would be Billie Blaze Bison.

“His children were calling it Billie Bison when he was creating it, so that’s where the Billie (name) came from, (so) he has no problem keeping Blaze in that title,” she said, noting that Keen is now creating a baby bison sculpture to join the “mother.”

Fritzke added that there is no signage at the TMJ office indicating the sculpture’s name, so this change won’t affect anything.

Coun. Heather Eby, council’s rep on the committee, wondered if the sculpture’s name should be “Billie Blaze the Bison” to remain consistent with the nearby Mac the Moose statue. However, regardless of whether that word was included, she said she was happy that Mr. Keen was happy with the outcome.

Committee member Jennifer McRorie expressed concern that Keen was creating a baby bison sculpture and assuming it would be added to the site. The committee had not signed a purchase agreement with him, while this would affect the committee’s budget.

Derek Blais, director of community services, replied that the artist sent him a lengthy text message that mentioned a bison calf artwork that he was making and that would “be born in April.”

“It will likely require the same (acquisition) process as the first one,” he said, with Keen having to propose the project to the committee, the group determining if there’s a cost or if it’s a donation, and council officially approving the initiative since it would be going on municipal property.

“There’s a lot of details to work out,” Blais added.

One member said the committee couldn’t make any decisions until they knew what Keen’s plans were, while Fritzke said she would re-connect with the artist to acquire more information.

Eby warned the committee to be careful since Keen may continue to create artwork and assume the city will take those pieces. However, the committee can’t accept or pay for everything he creates since the group’s funds are limited and other artists may want similar opportunities.  

The committee then approved a recommendation to rename the bison sculpture, with that recommendation to go to council for final approval.