an emard
As the last crickets of the season begin to fade and we all surrender to the silence, nowis the time for rest and to let Winter break us free. Another world encroaches, if only in moments and gestures.
Elixir is a collaborative project between dreamers, earth worms, butterflies, wildflowers, water, soil and sand, where flower seeds, soil, and concentrated efforts combine to become the material of kinetic energy.
A brick, a fountain, a catalyst, an agent, a sentence, a whisper.
These bricks are not meant to last, but nothing is meant to last forever. What comes from the ruin of this sculpture, of these bricks made by hand and will-power? What comes of all destruction? An opening. It won’t be long before these bricks have returned to where they came. A phoenix. As we slip closer toward Winter, the bitter cold will break-up the outer shell of the seeds in these bricks, releasing the embryonic material to take root when warmer and longer days return. A Winter gestation is necessary for new growth. The ruin of brick is requisite.
Last night we dreamt of meeting the finches and crickets and water that may find comfort here next Spring and Summer. Our cells met, touched, and broke apart. Our names writ on the surface of the water. We dreamt of our enmeshment and saw the horizon of Lake Michigan; a glimmer, a reflective pool, a reflexive message, a sign, a sigh. Our bodies dissolved into the air. We dreamt of wild bergamot and echinacea seeds taking to the sky, catching a ride on the wind, swirling, circling in glitter and resting on the grasses, the trees, the river, our bones. We dreamt of the milkweed fluff separated from the seed, knowing it’s done its job, basking in the sun and waiting for the rain to return it to the soil.
Take a moment to breath and listen. Take a seat, a walk, and dream.
_____________________________________
Elixir is an installation of mud bricks made with the soil and water from the site in which they are presented and infused with foraged native flower seeds and dried grass. The bricks were made with the help of Chicago-based artists, neighbors, and friends. The final form presented was decided on and build collaboratively with the imaginative minds of Robin and Linnea Hallum. The installation presented, Elixir, is part of Terrain Biennial 2021 (https://terrainexhibitions.org).
