Leaf Tunnel, Chanhassen, MN
2006

Worked with 20 volunteers and Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Staff to design, plan, build and install an 18-foot long willow tunnel with 4 oversize all-weather leaf-shaped pillows outdoors. This work was part of the Secret Garden exhibit, which included many interactive outdoor sculptures made by artists to attract visitors to the Arboretum in the summer and fall. Marty Hicks was my primary collaborator and advisor. My team and I cut, gathered and hauled willow (with permission) from the Carlos Avery Wildlife Refuge in Forest Lake, MN in the spring. We later soaked it in a pond at the arboretum to restore

its flexibility. Willow was the main material, besides zip ties, to hold the branches in place. I fabricated the weatherproof pillows out of polyester canvas, painted them, and stuffed them with foam to encourage lounging in the tunnel. Visitors romped in, peeked through, sat in and picnicked near the tunnel. After the four month exhibition, the willow was moved to another part of the arboretum for re-use.