Contemporary sculptor Dietrich Klinge is extremely well known in the German-speaking world. Meijer Gardens was the first American institution to exhibit his sculpture and acquire works for the permanent collection. Stele Garuge is an important early work for the artist, rendered in his classical style. Klinge focuses on a concept, before carving select pieces of wood with a chainsaw. He then carefully translates the form into bronze and creates the patina, or surface coloration. The character and grain of the wood and the cuts remain, though the patina is not intended to mimic natural appearances.