Documented artwork / figurative sculpture
Ben
Credit as documented: Deborah Butterfield
Ben is Deborah Butterfield's bronze horse in Chicago's Seneca Park. The Chicago Park District dates its creation to 1989 and installation to 1990, identifying it as a gift from the Eli M. Schulman Playground Reconstruction Committee. The sculpture gives the appearance of a horse assembled from separate pieces of wood even though the material is bronze. Its intertwined haunches suggest flexing muscles, while the turned head evokes the unhurried movement of grazing.
Already working on a project?
Adds directly to your existing saved project and keeps its brief intact.Documented work. Current availability, ownership and installation requirements must be confirmed with the artist.
At a glance
- Year / version
- 1989 (created); 1990 (installed)
- Materials
- bronze
- Documented setting
- outdoor
- Dimensions
- Not documented
- Dimensions apply to
- Not documented
- Availability
- Unconfirmed
Places & versions
Installation history
Historical presentations. A past installation does not establish the current location or suitability for a new site.
1989 (created); 1990 (installed)
Seneca Park, 220 E. Chicago Avenue, Chicago, Illinois
- Site
- Seneca Park
- City
- Chicago
- State / region
- IL
- Country
- United States
- Address
- 220 E Chicago Ave
- Setting
- outdoor
- Start year
- 1990
- Date meaning
- documented
Installation details checked 2026-10-17.
Materials and construction
The park's account places the work beside a tree-lined walkway and emphasizes the contrast between its apparently wooden construction and its actual material. That distinction matters when reading the facility page's image description, which calls it dark wood; the object narrative explicitly identifies bronze.
From a reference to your project
Keep the idea.
Shape the brief.
Save this reference to your shortlist while you explore. Review your selection, then carry the references you choose into a commissioning brief for your site, audience, timing and open questions.
Your shortlist is saved on this device. Saving a reference does not contact the artist or reserve a work. Participation, availability, price and site suitability need confirmation.
Plan the next step
Sources
- www.chicagoparkdistrict.com ↗ · Checked 2026-10-17