For now we’re teased with “Into Thin Air: Cranes in Flight” through a series of photographs from the studio of Jocelyn Russell.
She’s the 1979 Alamosa High graduate who became well-known in the bronze sculpting world with early career success in wildlife and animal bronze art. She then reached the true winner’s circle with her larger-than-life bronze version of the great Secretariat, the Triple Crown winner from the 1970s and considered horse racing’s finest champion.
Now she’s finishing “Into Thin Air: Cranes in Flight” for installation this summer at the Colorado Welcome Center at the intersection of Sixth Street and State Avenue in Alamosa. The tentative schedule is for an unveiling sometime in June.
The commissioning of the piece by the Woman’s Citizenship Club of Alamosa is a tribute both to the majestic Sandhill Cranes that frequent the Valley each year and to the sculptor herself.
“Jocelyn has always said, she just credits her experience living in the Valley and going to Waverly (school). The community has always been so supportive, and she’s always appreciated that and wanted to give back,” said Mary Russell, sister-in-law and one of the forces behind the Woman’s Citizenship Club’s effort with “Into Thin Air: Cranes in Flight.”
In 2022, shortly after Woman’s Citizenship Club announced plans for the project, Russell talked about her work in this episode of The Valley Pod.
The artist donated her own time to create the bronze that will be a landmark piece for Downtown Alamosa and the Sixth Street corridor. The Woman’s Citizenship Club raised another $90,000 from community members to cover foundry costs, and Alcon Construction, as it’s done with other projects, supported the effort by building the pedestal on which the bronze will sit.
“We have a big party planned, where everybody will be welcome. Jocelyn will be here on hand,” Mary Russell said in a taping of an upcoming episode of The Valley Pod.
Russell is also now beginning work on another attention-grabbing bronze piece. She’s the lead sculptor in an effort to memorialize Wyoming’s Grizzly 399, the old bear from Grand Teton National Park that was hit by a vehicle in the Snake River Canyon in October of 2024 and whose death brought attention to grizzly bears worldwide.
Russell’s effort will be to create another larger-than-life-size bronze depicting Grizzly 399 and her brood of four cubs. She’s on the clock to get it done by Mother’s Day 2026.