POISON IVY

Kreeger Museum Sculpture Garden, Permanent Collection
Washington, DC
2014

It was an honor to be asked by Judy Greenberg, the Director of the Kreeger Museum, to make an installation of my Roots on a tree in the sculpture garden for the permanent collection of the museum.

I have long been fascinated by the patterns of the roots of Poison Ivy. Their main artery is wide and thick in contrast to the thin and numerous lateral roots that come out of it, attach themselves to the tree bark and keep climbing.

This particular tree was my choice for quite a few reasons.

It is very well located and can be seen from many of the museum's balconies and windows. The tree is split so that my Root can fly in mid-air from one branch to the other. An important branch had already died and cut off, reminding us of its ephemeral nature. And last, but not least, I discovered remnants of dead Poison Ivy vines going up this tree that must have been cut down by the gardener.

My aim is to replace the dead Poison Ivy with a sculptural one made out of painted steel -- wishing, at the same time, to emphasize the beauty of the root while drawing attention to the danger of its position.