Tree House 2010

Connie Merriman
Gestures 14: May 8 – June 20, 2010
Materials
dawn redwood, light, paper, wood

Now I think of a tree house in another way. In a gesture to address the issues of stewardship, this fragile house is made to shelter a tree, and the natural world it represents, from humanity’s built environment. It is a house for a tree.

Description

Curated By Katherine Talcott

Artist Statement

I have always wanted a tree house. When I was young, I spent a lot of time in the top of a cherry tree that grew in a wood adjacent to my home. You could be quiet in the branches and watch animals walking the paths below. I thought it would be good to have a shelter for myself in the tree so that I could be more safe and comfortable. Now I think of a tree house in another way. In a gesture to address the issues of stewardship, this fragile house is made to shelter a tree, and the natural world it represents, from humanity’s built environment. It is a house for a tree.

About the Artist

Constance Merriman creates work that combine traditional mark making and constructions with time based media and documentation systems to form installations that explore the relationships of the environment, natural resources and economic and political power. Merriman’s work has been exhibited in galleries, museums and in public settings. She is currently involved in the Community Forest Project, an investigation into the role and value of green space within the urban environment.