It's no secret that Lakeland takes pride in its public art, from murals to sculptures.

City Editor Amelia here. One collection of art that has always caught my eye are the butterfly sculptures found across the city. So, I decided to put on my sleuthing hat and crack open the cocoon of where these sculptures came from.

The butterfly sculptures first fluttered into Lakeland nearly 20 years ago in October of 2006 as part of a public arts project titled "Kaleidoscope, Butterflies in Flight." It raised funds for the construction of Common Ground Playground, which was considered Polk County's first-ever fully inclusive play experience for children of varying abilities.

The idea came following the highly successful Swansation project that took place four years earlier in 2002. Each aluminum butterfly — spanning roughly four to eight feet in size — is mounted on a pole and was decorated by local and regional artists to become a totally unique piece.
Six months after the sculptures landed, they were auctioned off to the tune of nearly $600,000 in April of 2007, making a substantial dent in Common Ground's $2 million price tag — that's around $3,077,832 today.

So, why butterflies? The sculptures are a direct nod to the theming of Common Ground Playground, which looks like a butterfly when viewed from above.
Today, you can find the butterfly sculptures all over Lakeland and continue to raise funds for Common Ground through the Lakeland Rotary's annual Rotary Twilight 5K. Look out for these flutterific sculptures and add them to our community map. Snap a photo and upload it with the sculpture's location so others can find them as well. Good luck.