Hanging ‘Butterfly Rest Stop’ art sculpture weighing 3,400 lbs. is main attraction at Frisco’s new Kaleidoscope Park

July 11, 2024

Written by: Sophia Beausoleil

In just three months, Kaleidoscope Park in Frisco will open to the public as a new green space for people to relax, work, and play. One of the main attractions is a large hanging sculpture at the north end of the six acres of green space which pays homage to butterflies.

The piece is called “Butterfly Rest Stop” and was created and designed by world-renowned sculpture and fabric artist Janet Echelman.

The 3,423-pound sculpture is made up of 791,788 knots tied by hand and by loom and hangs high in the sky.

“It is quite possibly the largest outdoor piece of art in North Texas, and this is the only piece that she has in Texas, so we feel like people are going to come from all over to see this as well as the park,” said Shawn Jackson, the newly named executive director of Kaleidoscope Park.

She said the inspiration for the installment came from the butterflies that frequent the area.

“This area is on the path of the Monarch Butterfly migration, so we’ll have Milkweed planted beneath it,” explained Jackson.

According to her website, Echelman gained inspiration from the insects.

“It’s meaningful to me to be asked to help sculpt this new public park for North Texas. When I learned the Monarch butterflies migrate through the area each October, I wanted to plant milkweed below to help create a sustaining pollinator corridor, and to suspend my first flower-inspired sculptures in the sky to remind us of our interconnected destinies, and of the interconnected systems of the natural world of which we are a small part. This green space invites us all to gather and celebrate the fusion of nature, art, and community.” said Echelman in a news release.

It took crews on lifts about a week to install the fabric net to several pylons, including one that is 65ft high. The twine in the netting makes up almost 90 miles.

“It is made out of the same materials that the Mars rover is made out of,” said Jackson about the material of the net-shaped flower which can withstand winds upwards of 100 mph.

The visually appealing sculpture will be lit up at night but changes colors during the day depending on the sun.

“We were out here one day at 9 a.m. and it looks really pink, and then came out a couple hours later and it looks really yellow. So it’ll change and then at night it’ll light will have lighting on it and lighting sequences will change and so nobody will get bored with this piece of art and kind,” said Jackson.

The multi-million dollar park is six acres of green space in between Hall Park just south of the Star in Frisco.

There’s a little something for everyone, including walkways, playground, and WI-FI for people to work outside.

The urban park will have a children’s play area, dog park, recreation space for fitness programs, interactive water fountains, and performance space for concerts and artwork.

There will also be a new boutique hotel, luxury residential buildings and a new office tower that surrounds the park.

The $38 million project is funded through a public and private partnership. The city of Frisco owns the land and contributed $15 million. The rest of the money is from donations and the construction funds were from Kathryn and Craig Hall.