The Public Art Board's first major project -- a 29-foot-high sculpture made of steel and glass representing hardy prairie grass -- will be installed in the center of the East Main Roundabout at the intersection of East Main Street, Carter Avenue and Acres Street.

"This is the Public Art Board's first major project," PAB chairman Larry Walker told the Norman City Council at the council's discussion Tuesday evening.

The Public Art Board and Norman Arts Council last month selected Juan and Patricia Navarrete's sculpture, "Indian Grass," as the winning sculpture out of 62 proposals submitted for review by a PAB Selection Advisory Panel of 12 people, Walker said.

The sculpture, made of corten steel, stainless steel and dichroic glass, will stand 29 feet tall.

Corten steel is a special steel used in architecture, and is designed to weather or age to give a coppery color.

Dichroic glass contains multiple micro-layers of metal oxides. The main characteristic of dichroic glass is that it transmits different colors as certain wavelengths of light pass through or are reflected, causing an array of color to be displayed. The colors shift depending on the angle of view.

Walker said the sculpture would require little or no maintenance.

The sculpture's cost is $60,000, and will be funded by PAB through funds raised by donations on utility bills, private fundraising and the Art in Public Places Fund.

The sculpture must be completed and installed no later than Jan. 15, according to the agreement. The Norman Arts Council will purchase the work and transfer ownership to the City of Norman, Walker said.

The City of Norman will determine the final arrangement and placement of the work and will pay for the site preparation, including base and landscaping. The cost of the base is estimated at $5,000 and landscaping at $20,000, according to Parks and Recreation Director Jud Foster.

The council, at its Aug. 28, 2007, meeting, adopted an ordinance establishing the Public Arts Board and the Art in Public Places Fund. One of the duties of the Public Arts Board was to develop a master plan for the placement of public art.

Artists Juan and Patricia Navarrete are a husband and wife team from Taos, N.M.

The Public Arts Board is continuing to solicit donations for the sculpture through tax-deductible gifts to the Norman Arts Council's Art in Public Places Fund.

For additional information, contact the Norman Arts Council, 210 E. Main St., Norman, OK 73069 or call 360-1162.

The council's regular session began at 6:30 p.m. and lasted about 30 minutes, as every item was on the consent agenda and approved unanimously in one vote.