For Jun Kaneko, the audience coming and going to concerts, sporting events and conferences at the Mid-America Center posed a challenge. How could he design a space that would inspire curiosity? After much study, Kaneko developed a concept for a 22,000 square foot sculpture garden with 21 individual elements, the largest installation of his career. With a site nearly the size of a football field, framed by one side of the arena building, the artist created two tile walls to provide a sense of scale. At the entrance of the garden, three huge bronze heads on pedestal like tables create a larger than life welcome. Two groupings of Kaneko’s brightly patterned signature dangos then invite visitors to explore. The ceramic forms are complimented by a surface of black and white textured granite with seat walls and benches. Each clay dango is built by hand and glazed in a meticulous process that takes months. The colorful forms are built for the ages, much like the stones created by volcanoes. Kaneko named the garden Rhythm. He hopes that visitors enjoy the space in their own way and perhaps find that it inspires creativity.