JACKSON, WY — Herb Alpert is best known for his music, but the world-renowned musician is also an accomplished and respected expressionist painter and sculptor.

His new installation, “Spirit Totems: Sculpture by Herb Alpert,” opens at the National Museum of Wildlife Art this week. And the artist himself will be at the museum tomorrow, June 19, for a behind-the-scenes tour of the exhibition.

Now in his 80s, Alpert still plays the trumpet but has also been painting for 40 years and sculpting for 20. The transition from auditory to visual art, Alpert says, was simple. “My experience with art, as a musician, painter, and sculptor, is the same. It all seems to originate from the same place. When I paint, I keep going until I hear an inner voice telling me to stop. I believe that all artists are looking for the same magic… freedom to express themselves in the most authentic way.”

Always personal and expressive, Alpert’s sculptures draw interest with their freedom of form. His first totems were inspired by indigenous sculptural forms from the Pacific Northwest, but his Spirit Totems series, with their massive form, became more gestural. These large, improvisational totems include many animal and bird-like forms and reinterpret the traditional totem in an abstract fashion. Walking among these giants is awe-inspiring. Twelve will be displayed outdoors on the Museum’s Sculpture Trail, along with a soundscape featuring Alpert’s music.

‘The spirit totems will be overlooking the valley where the buffalos roam free and imagination runs wild, Alpert says.

The sculptures are a towering eight to 19 feet tall, making them among the tallest the Museum has ever exhibited. As a nod to Mr. Alpert’s extraordinary musical career, the sculpture installation will be complemented by Music for your Eyes, a compilation featuring his own relaxing trumpet tunes.

“It’s exciting to bring sculptures of this caliber to our Museum,” says the Museum’s Executive Director Steve Seamons. “Mr. Alpert’s Spirit Totem sculptures are true masterpieces, we feel honored to have them here at the Museum.”

Meet the artist Wednesday, June 19 at 11:30 a.m. at NMWA. The exhibition will be on display at the National Museum of Wildlife Art through September 29.