Monumetal: Reforged
Apr
25
to Apr 26

Monumetal: Reforged

  • The Kimbell Cultural Event Center (map)
  • Google Calendar ICS

MONUMETAL REFORGED 2026

CALL FOR ARTISTS

Found Object Scrap Metal Sculpture Competition

Downtown Bryan, Texas
Exhibition during the Downtown Bryan Street & Art Fair

MonuMetal began as a bold experiment — artists digging through piles of iron, transforming industrial remnants into monumental public art.

In 2026, it returns — reforged.

We are inviting artists, welders, fabricators, and creative teams to participate in a revived celebration of material, muscle, and imagination.

HOW IT WORKS

Applications Open: February 2026

Selected teams will gather in early March at
Bryan Iron & Metal
for an organized scrap collection event.

From there:

  • Teams will fabricate their sculptures independently in their own studios or shops.

  • Completed works must be delivered to The Kimbell Building by April 20, 2026.

  • All sculptures will be publicly exhibited throughout the full weekend of the Downtown Bryan Street & Art Fair.

This is industrial poetry made visible — right in the heart of downtown.

MATERIAL REQUIREMENTS

  • Ferrous metals only (scrap iron)

  • No copper, brass, aluminum, or high-value resale materials

  • Work must be structurally sound for outdoor public display

MonuMetal celebrates transformation — not commodity value.

SIZE & HANDLING REQUIREMENTS

To ensure safe installation and equitable participation:

  • Maximum weight: 500 pounds

  • Sculpture must be able to be safely moved using a pallet jack

  • Base must allow fork or pallet access

  • Artists are responsible for safe transport and delivery

If it can’t move on a pallet jack, it’s too big.

Artist Theme/DIRECTION is Connection & Community

This theme invites artists to explore how separate pieces become whole — and how individuals become something stronger together.

In welding, connection is literal fusion.
In sculpture, connection is structural interdependence.
In community, connection is shared effort, shared space, shared purpose.

No part stands alone. Every piece matters.

AUCTION & ARTIST SHARE

All sculptures will be auctioned during the festival weekend.

  • 50% of the final sale price will return directly to the artist/team

  • 50% supports event production and future Kimbell programming

A People’s Favorite Award will also be presented.

This structure honors both sustainability and artist equity.

WHY MONUMETAL?

  • Exhibit during one of Downtown Bryan’s largest arts weekends

  • Showcase your work to collectors and thousands of visitors

  • Reclaim industrial material as cultural expression

  • Be part of the return of a legacy event

MonuMetal is not just about scrap metal.
It’s about what a community can build when industry and art shake hands.

MONUMETAL REFORGED 2026

CALL FOR BLACKSMITHING DEMONSTRATORS

Live Demonstrations – April 26, 2026
The Kimbell Building | Downtown Bryan

Alongside the monumental sculpture exhibition, MonuMetal Reforged will feature live blacksmithing demonstrations — honoring the craft traditions that shaped our region.

We are inviting experienced blacksmiths to demonstrate:

  • Forging techniques

  • Tool making

  • Decorative and functional ironwork

  • Educational demonstrations for the public

Demonstrators will work in collaboration with regional smiths and invited partners, including Steephollow Forgeworks.

IMPORTANT DISTINCTION

The monumental sculptures exhibited during the Downtown Bryan Street & Art Fair are created in advance by selected teams.

The blacksmithing portion is live, educational, and experiential — bringing fire, hammer, and anvil into direct public view.

WHY PARTICIPATE?

  • Showcase heritage craft in a high-visibility arts setting

  • Engage directly with the public

  • Inspire the next generation of makers

  • Be part of the revival of a signature Downtown Bryan event

MonuMetal Reforged stands at the intersection of industry, artistry, and place.

It is muscle and memory.
It is heat and history.
It is Downtown Bryan, made visible in iron.

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A Gathering of Witnesses: A Book Signing with Miriam Rieck
Feb
21
4:00 PM16:00

A Gathering of Witnesses: A Book Signing with Miriam Rieck

  • The Kimbell Cultural Event Center (map)
  • Google Calendar ICS

From Miriam:

This Sunday. 2.22.26.

I will be standing in front of you at the Kimbell, and I am still a little in awe of how this has come together.

In a world that lives online, book signings still matter. They are how stories move without an algorithm deciding who sees them. Through eye contact. Through hearing a passage read aloud and feeling something shift.

I created the Signature Series because place matters. Bryan College Station shaped me. This book carries the life I have lived here, and it felt right to offer something tangible in the very town that influenced it.

Sunday from 1 to 4.

Sit and listen. Bring your knitting, your crochet, your handwork. Stay for a while. Then wander downtown. Step into Tucker and Company. Grab a pint at Blackwater Draw. See if Cousins Maine Lobster Truck is serving nearby. Let it be unhurried.

These gatherings are how books travel. Hand to hand. Heart to heart.

I would truly love to see you there.

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Bethel Park Falls Play
Feb
13
to Feb 15
event

Bethel Park Falls Play

  • The Kimbell Cultural Event Center (map)
  • Google Calendar ICS

The residents of the town of Bethel are facing a quiet but devastating crisis: their beloved park has been sold out from under them, unraveling not just a place, but a shared sense of belonging. In nine interconnected vignettes, sixteen locals confront the ripple effects of loss of jobs, homes, relationships, and certainty while discovering unexpected moments of love, courage, humor, and forgiveness. Over the course of a single day, as the park magically moves through all four seasons, lives intersect and transform.

From a weary security guard desperate to get home to her children, to a young mayor overwhelmed by responsibility, to a nostalgic fisherman who can’t seem to catch anything anymore, each character stumbles, adapts, and finds their footing again. Bethel Park Falls is ultimately a story about resilience and about the irreplaceable role shared spaces play in holding communities together.

These themes lie at the very heart of the Kimbell building’s mission. Like the park at the center of the play, the Kimbell exists as a gathering place where stories, cultures, and generations intersect where loss can be acknowledged, creativity can flourish, and connection can be rebuilt. By hosting Bethel Park Falls, the Kimbell reinforces its commitment to preserving spaces that foster empathy, dialogue, and collective renewal. The play becomes more than a performance; it becomes a reflection of the Kimbell itself; a living room for the community, where people come together to remember who they are, and who they can become, together.

Bethel Falls Park Theatre Ticket Bethel Falls Park Theatre Ticket Bethel Falls Park Theatre Ticket Bethel Falls Park Theatre Ticket Bethel Falls Park Theatre Ticket
Bethel Falls Park Theatre Ticket
$20.00
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