The installation is in. My trip out to Bend and Portland while only weeks ago seems further away than that. It was one of the best experiences I’ve had in my professional life. I’ve returned to a beautiful fall here in New England feeling energized and at a different level in my outlook and work. Thanks to Dan Snow of Dan Snow Stoneworks and his organized partner Elin – it was a joy to work together. Also thanks to the COCC art committee and the great vendors in Bend, who supplied earth, soil and plants to make the installation – Landsystems Nursery and Winter Creek Nursery. Here’s an excerpt from my journal while I was in Oregon at Central Oregon Community College completing day one of my part of the Tarriance.
– I finally got to the site and am able to spend the time here that I have wanted to do since the initiation of the proposal. Working remotely is a challenge to get the feel of place and definition of the surrounding context. On arrival, the organization of the stone pieces is different from what the plan called for, however, I am happy about the configuration, because there will be that much more interaction between stone and plant material. Dan has done a masterful job of choosing stone with individual character that speaks as a unified piece spanning the three tiers. I especially like the absence of uniformity in the cribbing and how those pieces relate to the basalt pillows resting on them as well as to the surrounding context.
Picking up the plant material and having the soil delivered went really well, so much so that I was able to modify my planting plan to meet the new configuration of sculpture in a way that is harmonious and engaging even with the plants at their immature stage. I’ve got the plants arrayed and some even planted. I am grateful for the new soil that we brought in because it is so rich and uncompacted – making it a joy to plant. We’ll see where I end up tomorrow. A good and encouraging start for the day…..
I’ll post day two and final images tomorrow…There were too many photos I wanted to share to do it all in one post.
