Take a summer art walk through Bluffton
Summer is a great time to explore the art spread across the Bluffton community – especially for viewers unable to visit art galleries elsewhere in Ohio.
As a weekly series, The Icon will feature the art created by John Peter Klassen, a long-time Bluffton College art professor.
For some viewers, this series is familiar. For others, it may be a first-time experience.
Either way, it’s an opportunity to take a walk and view some art that is uniquely Bluffton. Much of Klassen’s art is spread through Bluffton University campus, however several pieces, shown later in this series, are elsewhere in the community.
To start the tour here’s a brief background on the artist. Klassen was born in Kronsgarten, Ukraine in 1888. He and his wife, Anna, arrived in Canada in 1923, and eventually arriving in Bluffton the following year, escaping the aftermath of the Russian Revolution.
He was a member of the college art faculty from 1924 to 1958. His works combine religious themes with first-hand observations of the Russian Revolution, where he saw suffering, hardship and death.
Countless Klassen works are in the collections of friends, former students and artists throughout North American. He died at age 87 in 1975.
The Klassen piece in this week’s feature is a Russian Cossack, completed in 1939. The bronze sculpture is perhaps the artist's most technically complete work. Viewers will find it in Klassen Court, named after the artist. The Court has several Klassen pieces and is located between Founders Hall and Marbeck Center.
Stories Posted This Week
Thursday, April 3, 2025
Wednesday, April 2, 2025
- Tornado Watch issued for Allen, Hancock, Hardin and Putnam counties at 9:15 p.m. on April 2
- Flood Warning issued for Allen County at 11:03 a.m.
- Pirate tennis loss at Elida
- Pirate softball loses opener to Ada
- Pirate baseball falls to Ada
- Allen County will not test warning sirens on April 2
- March 2025 land transfers in the Bluffton Exempted Village School District
- April 22 crash report shows driver hit N. Dixie home
- Bluffton High School Honor Roll announced for 3rd quarter of 2024-2025
Tuesday, April 1, 2025
- Obituary for Betty C. Mumaugh
- Leo Club supports Bluffton Clean Up
- Wind, rain and potential flooding for April 2
- Grandey to major in education, play basketball at John Carroll
- Pirate tennis blanks Bath
- Pirate baseball sweeps opening twin bill vs. Pandora-Gilboa
- “I Have Not Forsaken the Word of God” reader's theater, April 13
- Easter Cantata performed on April 13 in Pandora