Why Does Downtown Shreveport Have a Giant Dog Statue?
My first year living in Shreveport-Bossier was an adventure. There was so much to take in and one of the statues always caught my attention, nope, I'm not talking about the giant chicken. Growing up I was obsessed with Clifford the Big Red Dog, so naturally, as an adult, I had to get a closer look at this big white dog. If you walk up to the dog statue you'll see the name tag says "Art", so obviously the good boy has a name. Art the dog is a curious guy, you can see his head tilt indicating he's peeking into the Central Artsation. Many refer to the pup as the "guardian of the arts in Northwest Louisiana". That's right, Art the dalmatian starts showing off as soon as the sun comes down. According to Roadside America's website, "Art" was a community effort and several members of the community were able to help get the statue up by purchasing spots, all 254 of them! There is a kiosk where you can type in your name and the spots light up. A grant from the Educational Foundation of America made it all come together and Shreveport's legendary William Joyce along with Brandon Oldenberg designed the ginormous dog. It's no surprise that William Joyce had some hand when it comes to celebrating art in Shreveport. In case the name William Joyce sounds familiar but you're having trouble pinpointing where you've heard the name, Joyce is a celebrated writer, illustrator, and filmmaker. You've probably seen his artwork on numerous covers of The New Yorker. If you want to see "Art" the dog in person visit 801 Crockett Street in Shreveport.