UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Stacy Levy, an award-winning environmental sculptor, will discuss how her work combines science and art at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 24, in 112 Forest Resources Building on the University Park campus. Originally scheduled for February, this presentation was postponed then because of inclement weather.

Levy's recent projects utilize stormwater runoff to make rainwater an asset to the site. One such project, "Ridge and Valley," is featured in the H.O. Smith Botanic Gardens in The Arboretum at Penn State. The sculpture illustrates the flow of water through the Spring Creek watershed by using rainwater to animate creeks, streams and other landscape features carved into a stone map.

Studying urban streams, rivers, tides and rainwater, Levy designs large-scale public art that clarifies the natural processes at work in places such as streets, parking lots, airports and nature centers. To research a project and plan the logistics of an installation, Levy frequently collaborates with scientists, engineers, surveyors and landscape architects.

Levy has received numerous awards for her work, including the Henry Meigs Environmental Leadership Award, the Excellence in Estuary Award from the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, Inc., and the DC Water Green Infrastructure Challenge Award with Urban Rain Design and Nitsch Engineering. "Ridge and Valley" earned the 2010 Year in Review Award granted by the Americans for the Arts Public Art Network. 

“As a sculptor my interest in the natural world rests both in art and science," said Levy, whose works can be viewed at www.stacylevy.com. "I use art as a vehicle for translating the patterns and processes of the natural world.” 

The presentation, which is sponsored by The Arboretum at Penn State, is open to the public at no charge. It also will be available live online. After the event, a link to the recorded talk will be provided on the Arboretum's Facebook page and website.