In my local park, an art project has been bloomin over the year and half since those October high winds that felled several tress in my local park almost two years ago.
A project has been brewing over the intervening months. It was decided to turn the tree stumps or remains into wood sculptures of a Wizard and Dragon. The park held a competition for children to tell a story about how they came to be there.
As I walk through the park towards the station every day, I have been witness to the evolution of the wood to statues. As they near completition, I thought I'd put together all my photos to see how they have changed.
6th September 2014
Walking in the park with CBC and N, I noticed that the tree which had been damaged by the storm had been separated into two pieces- a trunk (behind) and the fallen branch which someone had begun to carve into a dragon/dinosaur shape. I didn't know about the project at this stage.
8th February 2015
Not much happened from September to now as the weather was so changeable. The Dragon and the tree trunk were covered over with tarpaulins. On this sunny Sunday morning after church, I noticed that a wizard had appeared and been carved! He looked rather rustic, but beautiful and reminded me of the tree King from Doctor Who, The Doctor, the witch and the Wardrobe. There was no change to the dragon.
8th March 2015
The wizard had gained more details- his previously looking canoe-paddle now resembled a curved Staff, his hands hewed and his hat pointed. What we had feared was part of the dragon branch broken off was suddenly revealed to look like a small monkey perching on a bowed branch.
12th May 2015
Suddenly, the wizard was in technicolour alla Dorothy in Oz! This surprised me somewhat! The dragon was half painted.
The dragon was fully painted, what I suspected was a moneky was a small baby dragon, the dragon's tail appeared to be buried lochness monster style and woodchips appeared around the dragon. The wizard gained two small dragonettes peeping out of his cloak.
I don't know what is next for the Wizard and whether there will be a grand-unveiling up but I will try to update this as and when there is progress!
I've loved being witness to this growing art project and it only increases my love for my local park and those that take care of it. You can see the volunteer office behind, open in the large picture.
Does your local town have any projects like this?
xx
What a lovely, creative project. I like the fact that the sculptures have been painted too. Thanks for your comment on my recent posts. It helps to know that other schools are as crazy as mine! Jx
ReplyDeleteWhat a great thing to do. I like it painted but it was rather nice just left au naturel. Our town has got some carved things that have appeared this year. Not getting out much, I've no idea what it's about, why, or who carved them, but the one by All Saints Church in the town centre is of a person who looks set for a joust and at first sight I thought it was one of those human statues!
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Hi Kezie,visiting first time.
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oh wow! When I first saw these here on your blog, I never expected they would be painted - that was a surprise! They look brilliant!
ReplyDeleteAren't they fantastic! Like you, I really appreciate green open spaces and parks, and public art.
ReplyDeleteOur local park has a tree trunk which has been felled at some point which we always call the Crocodile Tree, since that's just what it looks like! xx
I'd love to watch something like this evolve in my home town!
ReplyDeleteOh wow, these are so creative :-) nothing like this where we live!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great project indeed. I can imagine how lovely it must be to see the dragon and the wizard becoming more and more real when colour is applied to them. It must be fun for the kids as well...and beneficial for their imagination.
ReplyDeleteToday kids have many options when it comes to being entertained but I think seeing something in person is always a bit different than seeing it on laptop, ipod or TV. This kind of project is a great way for kids to develop their imagination and spend some time outdoors!
What a lovely thing to have in the community!
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I loved to see the development of the wizard and the dragon! At first I thought I would like to see the dragon without the coat of paint, because it's also nice to show the work, the wood veins and so on. But really, after seeing it painted it looks amazing and I am sure adults and kids will love it! (I am in love with it since now!)
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Wow ,looks amazing! Great Work :)
ReplyDeletekisses
Those are really cool! Some towns in NC have a "theme" and they erect structures/statues in the downtown area that show that theme. Hendersonville is an area of apple orchards and lots of apple picking, so they have large (like, people-sized) apples (cut in half to show the core) statues around the downtown. Lots of people get their pictures taken with those.
ReplyDeleteNew Bern, which is the city nearest me, is named after Bern, Switzerland, famous for its bears, so New Bern, NC has lots and lots of cute people-sized bear statues in the downtown area. Painted various colors, wearing various outfits, they are cute.