Idea Blog (11-18-09): Confined Nature

Over the past couple days, staring at my images and speaking with Paul has led me to question how and why these old trees have survived in the little square confines the city has provided for them. They have their own plots to grow and provide life, however they only have that plot. Some trees roots are so powerful they create a small hill in the sidewalk and causing loose bricks and deep pickets where they once stood (a walking hazard). I couldn't find any information on urban plants survival but figured plants share similar traits so I researched how to re-pot houseplants. Here are some questions I got answers to.

Why do plants need to be re-potted?

To grow, be healthy.

How can you tell a plant needs to be re-potted/moved? (source)

If it appears Stunted, Deformed, Pale and dull, Top-heavy, Generally declining, Water drains quickly through soil

What happens if these plants are not re-potted?

Death.

I think that even though these are houseplants, the trees face the same dilemma's and the only reason they are able to live in their confines for as long as some of these trees have are because of their age. I think its okay to have a couple things going on right now so I am starting to show how plants are surviving or growing over or within man-made spaces and then people trying to re-grow or help nature by planting random things or using poisons (fertilizers).

I am trying not to think about presentation. I am acting as if the digital images and the negative collage's are my negatives. They are not the image yet. The completed image will be the way I present them. So for now, I'm trying to find happiness within the images. I might (might!) abandon the specific location's listed for removal and just focus on places that still have the stumps available so I can specify how old they are. Unfortunately, I would like to tell what kind of tree it is but it might not be relevant.

For Christmas, I asked for a new camera and I *think* I'm getting it ;) So if I decide to do these in DSLR then I will have better quality images. I am a little bored by the way they look though. They are seamless and if I saw them in a gallery I'd be like "Oooo! Trees!" but I wouldn't stop and look at it very long or absorb what it was trying to say (unless it was printed massive which I am thinking is mandatory for these).

As much as I like how disjointed the film negatives are, I think the film part itself is very distracting. But then I like the idea that its almost as if I'm trying to repair the damage and put it back together with my tape and scissors. Then there's what Paul said which which I mentioned earlier: It resembles the Richmond sidewalks. I especially like his comment because the trees have that power to uproot and destroy the sidewalks which it looks like it did here. Perhaps I should find areas where that happened? (It shouldn't be hard, Richmond's sidewalks are death traps).

In my last meeting, Paul said this project is very contemporary which...I never, ever thought anyone would ever say about my work. Its good because thats what everyone wants us to make, but it didn't make me, the artist, feel right. Something just felt weird about the word "contemporary" being attached to my work!

I am going to be in Northern Virginia from Monday to (hopefully) Monday so I plan on shooting tree stumps there too. Hopefully I will find information around there. Richmond's old but the Manassas Battlefield too? 'Sup history overload! Just think about all the things these tree's 'saw!'