Artist Statement

As simple as a child’s game of cats cradle, colorful silk ribbons are tied between the trees of an historic apple orchard. They vibrate with the breeze, making the wind visible and giving the illusion of a breathing organism. It is a living sculpture, animated by the wind and imbued with the energy of the living trees.

Physically connecting the trees to each other by using strips of fabric makes the relationships between them visible. The weaving of the fabric between the trees suggests a nest, a basket, a spider web, a net, a kiva, our nervous system. It defines inside and outside. It creates a room, ephemeral and permeable to wind and weather, with an earthen floor and the open sky for its roof. Inside that room the space becomes a meeting place, a stage, a container for interactions both planned and spontaneous.

This installation at Pipers Orchard speaks to the deep connection between humans and nature through agriculture. Man manipulates nature, cultivating the plants that provide food and weeding away those that don’t. We prune, weed, and nurture these trees so they will provide us with nourishment.

Over the duration of the installation it will change respond to nature. The colors of the fabric will fade and the silks will stretch and sag. These changes mimic the changes of the seasons from Spring to Autumn. The trees blossom, are pollinated, and fruit. Leaves bud, absorb the Summer sun, fade, and fall. We, too, change and age through the seasons of our lives. All these life cycles are bound together, much like the trees are bound together by a ribbon of silk.

The beauty of this installation lies in its simplicity. Silk, trees, time, and intention create a container for performance, interaction, and contemplation of the passage of time and our connections to the Earth.