Rabbit sculpture 'Harvey' hopping away from downtown Coeur d'Alene

COEUR d'ALENE — Rabbit season is over for the Art Spirit Gallery.

The popular metal bunny sculpture "Harvey" that has watched over downtown Coeur d'Alene since 2015 is hopping away to its new home in Arizona this weekend. It is expected to be installed at the home of John and Julie Vanderwey midweek.

"It's going into a very unique situation," John Vanderwey said Friday in a phone call with The Press. "I love it. It’s so fun. We’re building our whole backyard around it."

The Vanderweys, who visit Coeur d'Alene in the summer and have a son who is a student at Gonzaga University, have had their eyes on Harvey for a while.

"It's funny because when we decided to buy Harvey, it was probably six months ago. All during the summer, friends of ours would be sending pictures of them in front the rabbit," John said. 

Harvey became a symbol of chasing a dream and making it come true.

"It became, 'What's your rabbit?'" John said. "I’d tell the story, 'I really want this rabbit.' I don't know why, I think it would look great with the golf course, and it makes us happy."

He said they plan to place large golf balls around the sculpture, an artistically comedic riff on the many golf balls they find in their yard.

"We’re actually having landscaping done right now, building a platform for it," Julie Vanderwey said.

The Lake City's larger-than-life lagomorph won't be a lone wolf in its new location.

"We're on a golf course down here in Phoenix, and there's bunnies everywhere," John Vanderwey said. "When we saw Harvey four years ago, we were like, 'That would be fun to have.' It took us about three-and-a-half years to pull the trigger."

Harvey was created by Coeur d'Alene-born-and-raised metal artist Tyree Riggs, who has shown her works at the Art Spirit since 2010. Harvey was named for the 1950 Jimmy Stewart film “Harvey,” in which Stewart’s character has an imaginary friend named Harvey who is a rabbit.

“We will miss him dearly,” Art Spirit owner Blair Williams said.

However, the gallery won't miss having to shoo away the rowdy and intoxicated who insist on scaling the sculpture, which had an asking price of $23,000 before it was sold for an undisclosed negotiated amount.

Even though it has a saddle, it wasn't meant for riding.

"Around 2017, we started to see an increased number of people climbing on Harvey," Williams said.

The occasional child lifted up for a photograph was one thing, but the drunken brides-to-be and friends celebrating bachelorette parties and ignoring the "do not climb" sign were common occurrences. The latest sign informed people that in the case of a liability, it would be used as "exhibit A." 

"They’d be standing there holding the sign they just ripped off, hoisting the bride and you’d say, ‘Please get off the rabbit,'" Williams said.

Preceding Harvey was a large buffalo sculpture that also brought about interaction with the public, including those who climbed it despite requests not to.

Williams said Art Spirit has asked Riggs to possibly work on another piece to fill the space left by Harvey, but the artist is fairly booked at this time.

"We’ll take recommendations, however, having had the buffalo and the rabbit now, I think we’ll steer clear of anything that can be ridden," Williams said with a laugh.

She said she wants people to know how lucky Art Spirit feels for Harvey to have been a part of Coeur d’Alene’s cultural history 

“Whenever you’re able to create something that will cause people to say, ‘Remember ... ?’, it’s a special thing. Especially in your hometown," Williams said. "‘Remember the rabbit? Remember the buffalo?’ We hope to create the next ‘remember’ soon."

Those who miss Harvey can rest assured it will be enjoyed in Phoenix just as much as it was enjoyed in Coeur d'Alene.

"Everybody’s going to see this rabbit," John Vanderwey said. "It's going to a loving family."

    Art Spirit owner Blair Williams gives "Harvey" a smooch Thursday before the sculpture is taken down to be moved to its new home in Phoenix. “We will miss him dearly,” Williams said.
  

    Metal artist Tyree Riggs is seen with her "Harvey" creation when it was installed next to the Art Spirit Gallery in November 2015. Harvey has been purchased by a couple in Phoenix and is expected to be installed at its new home next week.