The Story Behind Lansing’s Giant “Gear Head” Sculpture

If you live or work in Lansing, you've probably seen it before...

That giant, metal head full of gears near Downtown Lansing.

What Is Lansing’s “Gear Head” Sculpture?

Did you know there's actually a really cool story about this piece of art?

While affectionately known as "gearhead" by Lansing residents and passersby, this statue's name is actually Portrait of a Dreamer. And what's even cooler, it's made by an artist based out of St. Johns, Michigan!

Meet the Michigan Artist Behind the Sculpture

Ivan Iler is the artist behind this giant, metalwork sculpture. He specializes in metal fabrication and large-scale public art. He's responsible for sculptures all over America and he even came in second place on Netflix's Metal Shop Masters.

Portrait of a Dreamer was first installed in 2017 as part of a City of Lansing Arts Impact project. The 15-foot-tall interactive statue is made entirely of stainless steel and it can be found on Michigan Avenue overlooking Museum Drive.

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When you get to the statue, there's actually a crank that can be turned to move the gears inside the head and the ones that are spilling out. It's a super cool interactive piece.

Here's what the artist had to say about the sculpture's design:

As I designed this sculpture to represent all three organizations that are housed on Museum Drive, I thought of gears ‘turning’ and those gears/thoughts/ideas moving down toward the cultural district

If you want to see the statue for yourself and give the crank a turn, you'll find it on Michigan Avenue near Downtown Lansing, you can't miss it.

Take a look at some up close pictures, below.