Title: Invasive Art Tails
Project Description:
We propose to create nine, 8 foot tall cattail-like sculptures to be installed in a group at a location of your choosing. Some of the seed pods will be seen as realistic representations of cattails but others will morph into architectural towers. We chose this size, approximately 3 times the size of actual cattails, for two reasons:
- From a distance, the size transforms the group from a simple representation of nature into the realm of public art.
- When close up it puts the seed pods at eye level, transforming the installation into an appreciation of the individual sculptures.
Materials & Specs:
- The stems are made of galvanized steel rod 1″ in diameter and 9′ long. The bottom is buried 3′ in the ground and the top traverses most of the length of the seed pod.
- The tips are made of 3/8″ diameter galvanized steel rod and are 2′ tall.
- The seed pods vary between 20″ and 24″ tall. Their widths vary between 3.5″ and 5″ in diameter.
Seed Pod Sculpting:
The 9 seed pods will be created using a traditional sculpture technique called slip casting. They will be sculpted in plasticine over a wood armature. A three-part reusable mold will be cast in plaster. The molds will be used to create slip castings in ceramic. The finished ceramic seed pods will slide down over the stems and lock in place.
We are aware that creating ceramics for the outdoors is difficult in our climate, however it can be done if the fired clay has a porosity under 5%. If awarded this opportunity, we will have a full year to experiment with the methods of clay firing that can hold up under Minnesota winters.
Installation:
We will be consulting with Silverwood Park staff on the least disruptive method of installing the sculptures. Note, the stems have a 4″ diameter disk welded at the bottom of the stem rods, making it difficult to remove the sculptures by pulling them up.
Currently, this is how we see the installation process: We will use a simple posthole digger to dig a 3′ hole. The sculptures will be inserted and backfilled. At this point they will be adjusted for height and tilt, according to the aesthetics of the artists. Then the soil will be tamped down securely. Hopefully, this will afford the least disruption of the park ecology. Note, there is no use of concrete; also the steel is galvanized so it will not rust or decay.
Artist Statement
Artist Statement or Bio:
The Team: Lisa Roy and Remo Campopiano are two artists sharing space in the former Aldo Moroni Studios. Lisa Roy was Aldo’s apprentice for the last two years of his life. Campopiano shared a life-long friendship with Aldo going back to the 1980s. Remo and Aldo collaborated on several major installations. As a team, Roy and Campopiano are dedicated to continuing the Moroni legacy while pursuing their own artistic visions.
Lisa Roy is a photographer and a sculptor. During the two years as an apprentice to the late Aldo Moroni, Lisa helped Aldo complete his last public art commission for the Expo Apartments. Twelve sculptures were made out of clay and then cast into bronze. Currently 4 of them are installed on the street with the others to come as the next phases of Expo construction are complete. Lisa has been photographing weddings for couples in the Twin Cities since 2010, and participating in art shows for the fine art side of the photography business since 2015.
Remo Campopiano is a veteran artist with a 40-year career in installation art, painting and public art sculpture. He is also a community organizer. In the 80s he co-founded “Artpaper,” Minnesota’s Visual Arts Newspaper. In the 90s Campopiano led the digital art movement called “Artnetweb” out of a storefront in Soho, NYC. Currently he is bringing together Northeast artists in the form of a “Public Art Collab.” If funded, this proposal will be the third commission. (See work samples “Timber & Tie” and “Urban Cattails” to view the other two.)
Why Cattails: “Invasive Art Tails” is playing off the idea that cattails are an invasive plant species. In a fashion, art in public places is also invasive to nature. You could say all human activity is invasive. The best example is our sprawling cities. “Invasive Art Tails” illustrates this concept. From a distance this artwork could almost be mistaken as nature. The closer you get, more is revealed, until you are directly immersed in the human world of architecture and art. Another way of looking at it is that Silverwood is a park within a city. “Invasive Art Tails” depicts a city within a park.