Zirkel is a fence made of growing trees. I build Zirkels in sanctuaries or sanctuary-like places, where the land is already protected
Baker University generously invited me to create a land art sculpture in the wetlands because they wanted art built on their land with materials found from the land. My first Zirkel was on the Baker Wetlands in Lawrence, Kansas. Balker Wetlands is located on the western edge of the Black Willow growing range and is only 200 miles from the Geographic Center of the United States.
At the time I created the Zirkel on the Baker Wetlands, it was overflowing with Black Willows, so they allowed me free range to work with these trees.
I grew up in rural Germany. I knew some Weidenkirchen (churches grown from willows) near my hometown. I found those inspiring, and as a young teenager, I spent time building a three-story treehouse with my twin friends in a large willow tree. I have had previous life experiences connecting willows to art.
I wanted to create a sustainable impact on the land--a sign of something that remains, grows, grows back and grows taller without human interference.
The Zirkel consists of nearly two hundred 12' - 14 ' tall black willow stems. Each cut, sharpened, and inserted into the wet soil, each in an angle creating a fence-like structure that eventually would allow all willows to grow together at their intersections, merging into one big circular shaped tree sometime in the future.
In late March 2018, I finished my first Zirkel. Once completed, it stands tall and big, and there is this intriguing circular space enclosed. This space inside is a place that is super-protected and is symbolic of the trees wanting to merge while keeping themselves apart from their surroundings.
Zirkel No. 1, Baker Wetlands, Kansas, March 30, 2018 (300 meters)
Archival pigment print, 9” x 13.5” (23 cm x 24.3 cm)
Zirkel No. 1, Baker Wetlands, Kansas, March 30, 2018 (looking west)
Archival pigment print, 9" x 13.5" (23 cm x 34.3 cm)
Shaping Willows, Zirkel No. 1, Baker Wetlands, Kansas, March 2018
Video 1 min, 4096 x 2160 pixels
Zirkel No. 1, Baker Wetlands, Kansas, March 30, 2018 (30 meters)
Archival pigment print, 9" x 13.5" (23 cm x 34.3 cm)
Spacing Willows, Zirkel No. 1, Baker Wetlands, Kansas, March 2018
Video 59 sec, 4096 x 2160 pixels
Zirkel No.1, March 30, 2018 (100 meters)
Archival pigment print, 9" x 13.5" (23 cm x 34.3 cm)
Baker Wetlands aerial image before the Zirkel.
Archival pigment print, 18" x 24" (44 cm x 60 cm)
Marking Ground, Zirkel No. 1, Baker Wetlands, Kansas, March 2018
Video 2:12 min, 4096 x 2160 pixels
Zirkel No. 1, Baker Wetlands, Kansas, March 30, 2018 (east end)
Archival pigment print, 11" x1 4" (28 cm x 35.6 cm)
Making Holes, Zirkel No. 1, Baker Wetlands, Kansas, March 2018
Video 1 min, 4096 x 2160 pixels
Inserting Willows, Zirkel No.1, Baker Wetlands, Kansas, March 2018
Video 59 sec, 4096 x 2160 pixels
Zirkel No.1, Social Media Contributions, Lawrence, Kansas 2018
Zirkel No. 2, Whitney Center for the Arts, Sheridan, Wyoming 2018
Archival pigment print, 9" x 13.5" (23 cm x 34.3 cm)
Zirkel No. 2, Whitney Center for the Arts, Sheridan, Wyoming 2018
Archival pigment print, 9" x 13.5" (23 cm x 34.3 cm)
Zirkel No.2, Installation, Sheridan, Wyoming 2018
Zirkel No. 3, Dedee Shattuck Gallery, Westport, Massachusetts 2019
Zirkel No. 3, Dedee Shattuck Gallery, Westport, Massachusetts 2019
Zirkel No. 3, Dedee Shattuck Gallery, Westport, Massachusetts 2019
Zirkel No. 3, Dedee Shattuck Gallery, Westport, Massachusetts 2019