The Winters Law Group Spotlight on Services: Importation and Customs

Photo by: Sholten Singer/The Herald-Dispatch

Ashland Celebrates Massive Works of Art on City’s Waterfront

The Winters Law Group is proud to have worked with a team of dedicated individuals to bring a series of large bronze sculptures to the riverfront in Downtown Ashland, Kentucky.  Jenny Flanigan, who is of counsel with the Winters Law Group, drew upon her experience with importation and customs requirements in working to secure passage for the sculptures from the artist’s studio in China.

Three 32- to 35-foot sculptures named Vulcan, Venus and Genesis were crafted by Gines Serran-Pagan, who was born in Spain but has spent most of his life in New York City. They sit on 10-foot-high pylons on Ashland’s riverfront and will be lit each evening with a changing show of lights.

During a January 4^th dedication ceremony at Ashland’s historic Paramount Theatre, Serran-Pagan discussed the inspiration and meaning of each piece. The artist explained that Vulcan represents the hard-working people of Ashland as well as the city’s connections to the metal industry.  Venus, which is the largest bronze female classical sculpture of its kind in the world, is holding an Ash tree.  Serran-Pagan explained that this female personification of nature and renewal represents the natural beauty of the Ashland Area.  Genesis, the swirling image at the center of the trio, represents the beginning and end – the religious foundations of the community.

Serran-Pagan and his son created the works in a studio in China, which was chosen due to its proximity to sources of bronze and its large work area.  Shipping the sculpture to the United States was a process that took several months. The Winters Law Group was pleased to assist in ensuring that importation, customs, and taxation paperwork was properly completed so that the statutes, which were gifted to the city by an anonymous donor, were accepted into the country and were able to make their way to Ashland.

Big or small, each instance of importation presents legal considerations.  The Winters Law Group can help you work through the red-tape.

Additional Coverage:
Bronze sculptures en route to Ashland
The wait is over: Bronze sculptures going up
Photos: New sculptures dedicated in Ashland
Massive works of art headed to Ashland’s riverfront

• Jessica Winters, Managing Member

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