Winner – Decorative Commercial
Ribbon Walk at the Pow Wow Dance Arbor
Location: Wabeno
Owner: Forest County Potawatomi
Concrete Supplier/Contactor: County Ready Mix Corporation
Landscape Architect: Alchemy Concrete
General Contractor: Greenfire Construction
Ready-mixed concrete reinforced the purpose of the Pow Wow grounds: to honor and celebrate heritage, culture, and community. The four quadrants of the Ribbon Walk, (correspond with the medicine wheel, the four seasons, and the four cardinal directions) set the stage.
Each quadrant is further defined by clan identification (in the case of Eagle, Bear, and Wolf) and whitetail deer (a traditional element in many ceremonies). Design skill was needed to ensure the stamping of each animal print was correct.
The Ribbon Walk that flows around and into the dance pavilion used Gull Gray/ Hadley Creek Slate stamped concrete as the base. The artful placement of the animal prints provided wayfinding to and between entries leading to the dance pavilion.
The flexible nature of ready-mixed concrete ensured that the animals important to the place could be represented, which connected the Ribbon Walk to heritage and tradition, and linked generation to generation through storytelling. The project began in May of 2022 and finished in September. A total of 112 cubic yards was used.