Since 1927, Swan Lake Iris Gardens has represented the best of Sumter’s beauty and tranquility. It’s hard to find anyone who grew up in the community who doesn’t have fond memories of the city’s largest and most beautiful public park. Inspired by these memories, renowned sculptor Grainger McKoy created “Recovery,” a dramatic eighteen-foot sculpture that was unveiled to the public on May 1, 2010.
The magnificent stainless steel statue represents the wing of a pintail duck in flight. As the artist describes it, “(this is the) wing position that is considered the weakest in bird flight, yet in the artist’s eye is the position with the most beauty and grace. All of us are in recovery somewhere in our lives, as is our environment, of which Swan Lake is a unique part.”
The wing itself measures 14 feet in height and weighs approximately 1,500 pounds. Working from Mr. McKoy’s design, Paul and Robert Beaty completed the rough wooden model. It was then hand-carved and detailed by Mr. McKoy, and finally cast at a Pennsylvania foundry. Set in a disappearing fountain in the midst of a sidewalk and decorative wrought-iron fencing surrounded by Japanese iris beds, the statue commands a panoramic view of Swan Lake’s Heath Gardens.