The Arts Commission Announces Restoration and Reinstallation of ‘Art Tatum Celebration Column’ at Huntington Center

Daily Dose  |  07/02/2026 4:00 pm

The Arts Commission of Greater Toledo’s Art in Public Places Program is pleased to announce the impending return of the sculpture Art Tatum Celebration Column by Cork Marcheschi following its removal for extensive repairs. The sculpture will be reinstalled outside the Huntington Center on the corner of Madison Avenue and North Superior Street on Tuesday, July 7. 

The restored sculpture will be fully reassembled onsite, following the completion of repairs to the structural column supporting the sculpture and an offsite process to fully recoat the sculpture’s 88 black-and-white steel piano keys, as well as the replacement of silicone gaskets, cast glass elements, and a complete update to the sculpture’s internal lighting system to restore evening illumination between the sculpture’s twisting piano keys. 

The sculpture was originally commissioned in 2009 via a selection process that chose a proposal from San Francisco artist Cork Marcheschi to honor the life and legacy of Toledo native and jazz icon Art Tatum. Tatum is widely regarded as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, and the fluidity and energy of his playing style is reflected in this sculpture through the twist of the column and the distinct internal glow that shines through the glass plates between the 88 powder-coated aluminum squares of the sculpture, representing piano keys. In Marcheschi’s words; “The warping of the keyboard is a direct representation of Art Tatum's incomparable ability to bend the piano." 

Since then, it has greeted visitors to Toledo Walleye hockey games and other events at the Madison Street entrance to the stadium, and it will continue to do so for many more years under The Arts Commission’s stewardship. 

More information about the Art Tatum Celebration Column and other public works of art can be found on The Arts Commission’s website and on the Art Commission’s free Digital Public Art Guide via Bloomberg Connects, where visitors can access a variety of accessible tours and maps of the City of Toledo’s public art collection. 

The sculpture will sport a fully restored coating in addition to replaced glass components and updated lighting. The Arts Commission would like to thank Cork Marcheschi of San Francisco CA, Flatlanders Sculpture Supply of Blissfield MI, Bay Crane of Oregon OH, Great Lakes Electrical of Toledo OH, and the Northwest Ohio Building Trades Council for their assistance in completing this project. 

About The Arts Commission

The Arts Commission of Greater Toledo is the longest standing arts commission in the state of Ohio, founded in 1959, administering the City of Toledo’s One Percent for Art Program since 1977. The Arts Commission is supported in part by the Ohio Arts Council and by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.