TOPEKA — Former Great Bend resident Alan Detrich has entered a religious-themed 3D sculpture in the Topeka Competition exhibit at the Alice C. Sabatini Gallery in the Topeka and Shawnee Public Library. The exhibit features 40 pieces of innovative artwork representing a wide range of techniques and media in three dimensions. It opened on March 14 and runs through May 11.

“The only common thread among the pieces is that all the artists work in three dimensions – their art ranges from sculpture to ceramics to jewelry-making,” writes Brittany Keegan, the library’s curator of exhibitions. “This year’s Topeka Competition is juried by multidisciplinary visual artist Mona Cliff (A’aninin/Nakota Nations).”

Detrich’s piece, created in 2020, is titled “Epigenetic Gene device,” and combines bronze, quartz, fossilized dinosaur tooth and a solar panel. The artist’s explanation of the piece states, “Genetic material is in a constant state of adaptation and change at speeds that are accelerating faster than our ability to comprehend. Because ‘Art is’ ‘what the Artist says it is’ ... this device will someday purify DNA.”

The exhibit is partially funded by the Friends of the Library. Events related to the exhibit are made possible by The Library Foundation through contributions from The National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom.

Detrich is a 1966 graduate of Great Bend High School and lived in Great Bend for many years as an antique dealer and fossil hunter. Most recently, his fossils are featured (and offered for sale) in the novel “Almighty Obsession,” by Tom Field, published in 2024.