Fiddleheads

9.5’x 20’x 12′
Reinforced cement
2003
Commissioned
UNCA–Kellogg Center; near Hendersonville, NC

Fiddleheads consists of seven hollow reinforced cement pieces ranging in height from 4′ to 10′. The installation spreads across an area 15′ by 20′. The sculpture is located on the Rudnick Nature Trail at the University of North Carolina-Asheville’s Kellogg Center near Hendersonville, North Carolina. It was commissioned through an open competition by the Center for Crafts, Creativity, and Design.

Before submitting my initial proposal I visited the center and walked the trail to get a sense of the setting and to seek inspiration for forms. As I walked I began to think of plant-like forms that I have used in previous sculptures. The idea of plant-like forms led me to consider the forms of newly emerging ferns, or fiddleheads. I imagined these forms on a large scale and that image seemed to be a harmonious integration of artwork into the trail. In designing the forms, I wanted to capture a strong sense of life force, pushing upward and opening, though I did not want to represent ferns in a literal, realistic way.