The Parade of Hearts
In the wake of massive transitions and challenges in the last two years, Kansas Citians chose to do what they do best - share the love.
The Parade of Hearts, a public art campaign imagined in the darkest days of the pandemic, aimed to be a unifying force within the KC community. From its inception and development to today - just a few weeks after the 5-foot heart sculptures were installed around the metro - the pride it has inspired throughout KC Heartland is palpable.
The mission of the Parade of Hearts is two-fold: 1) to unite people and businesses from around KC Heartland, and 2) to reinvigorate sectors hit hardest by the events of the last several years. As part of the campaign, more than 60 sponsors came together to provide grants in the areas of health and wellness, education, small/minority owned businesses, arts and culture, and hospitality and tourism.
The Parade was unveiled in the summer of 2021 and began with a call to local artists to submit their designs for the heart sculptures. The artists’ designs reflected a multitude of personal experiences and passions, from die-hard sports fandoms and cultural heritage tributes to love for animals and vibrant city landscapes. After receiving more than 700 submissions, the committee chose 154 designs from 123 artists, with some artists producing two designs.
Dimensional Innovations created the base sculptures, then artists got to work bringing their creations to life - in art studios, in community spaces, in garages with space heaters. Some worked in groups, others alone; some found beauty in simplicity, while others fabricated large additions to their sculptures, making each heart a distinctively unique expression of both the artist and the aspect of KC Heartland they chose to represent.
In mid-March, the 154 hearts were revealed to the public and placed throughout KC Heartland, alongside an app enabling users to both locate and learn the stories behind the designs. As of March 22, 2022, thousands of visitors have already made their way to the KC hearts, taking pictures and sharing many of their own stories of living in the region.
Long before the eye-catching hearts dotted our landscape, the KC heart made an appearance on railroad workers' pins and baseball uniforms - learn more about the history of the heart as the symbol for KC.