Kirkpatrick Memorial Tower

The Eleanor Blake Kirkpatrick Memorial Tower was commissioned in 1999 to be the signature sculpture of the Oklahoma City Museum of Art in the Donald W. Reynolds Visual Arts Center. Created by glass artist Dale Chihuly, The Tower stands as a memorial to the late Eleanor Blake Kirkpatrick, a Museum founder. Funded by the Museum's Beaux Arts Acquisitions Fund, it is one of the largest Chihuly towers in the world, occupying the three-story atrium in the Museum’s main lobby.  The Tower is 55 ft. tall, 7' 6" in diameter, and is mounted on a black granite reflecting pool. It is comprised of 2,100 individually blown glass parts, held together by a seven piece steel armature, or spine, with 2,100 individual forks, and weighs 20,000 pounds. Illuminated 24 hours a day, The Tower rises as a beacon for Museum visitors. It is one of the many tower-type sculptures Chihuly has made since 1996, of which no two are alike.