As part of the exhibition inside the Parsons Building Olivia Hassett also placed another of the layered paper tube sculptures in the exhibition area. Instead of a shorter tube like in the outdoor installation she made a much longer thinner tube that snaked up the wall and over the partition and disappeared into the space behind the exhibition area.
The idea with this piece was to let it seem like the long thin tube was continuous and that it was possibly connected to the other tubes in the outdoor installation. In this case it was an illusion but it highlighted Hassett’s continued interest in the notions of the inside/ outside and liminal spaces in the Parsons Building.
The installation of tube-like sculptures embracing the trunk of the Oregon maple were modeled on scanning electron microscope images taken by Colin Reid of the microscopic tubes that carried the water and nutrients up the Oregon Maple that fell in 2018.
Comprised of laminated layers of different materials the tubes included a layer of various images printed onto paper from the numerous scientific studies undertaken by David Taylor and Tim Hone, a layer of macerated plant material saved from the fallen trees was over laid on top of the imagery partly obscuring the research. These layers were then embedded under layers of acid free tissue. Finally the structure was coated in a green coloured unique bio plastic protective layer developed in conjunction with Conor Buckley.
All
of the tubes were construted on top of a wire armiture that was
altered in size and shape each time to ensure that all of the tubes
had a different shape. At the time of installation the artist placed
each tube in a circle so as to surround the tree trunk. The tubes
were held in place for the duration of the exhibition by gardening
wire.
These
tubes were deliberately made from multiple laminated layers of paper.
The installation was designed to alter and change during the
exhibition in TCD. In fact each tube buckled, bent and collapsed in
different ways mirroring the imagery and elements of the research
being undertaken by David Taylor.
The artist was delighted to see the installation alter in such an interesting way during the exhibition. Each week she visited the exhibition and documented the change to the installation. I will add some of the images from these changes in a later blog post.
This
week is the last opportunity to see the Trinity College Exhibition in
both the Museum Building and Parson’s Building on the main Trinity
College Dublin campus. I will be de-installing the work this Friday
morning.
I
will be sad to take the work away as it feels like the end of a very
long journey with the majestic Oregon Maples of TCD. On the other
hand we really enjoyed engaging with the decendant Oregon Maple
growing through the Parsons Building.
You
never know where the Trinity College Trees Team will focus their
attention next!
Embrittled | Resilient is a collaborative science, art and conservation exhibition inspired by the majestic Oregon Maples of Trinity College Dublin. Spread over three venues on the main campus it opened to the public on the 28th of March 2019 with a series of talks by David Hackett, David Taylor, Tim Hone and Olivia Hassett outlining the background to their respective areas of research. Olivia Hassett also created a solo performance piece with the Oregon Maple in the Parsons Building.
Solo Performance with Oregon Maple on first floor of the Parson’s Building
See the map and three downloadable information pdf’s below, which highlight the three exhibition venues on campus and give you a bit of information behind the works in each venue.
The
work will be available to view during normal business hours up until
the 3rd of May 2019.
To whet your appetite I have created a short slideshow of a few images from the various works sited across the three venues on the main Trinity College Campus. See below.
Twitter feed relating the the fallen Oregon Maple, images of second Oregon being felled
Oregon Maple plant material, stainless steel cable, concrete paint
3D printed Oregon Maple leaf by Conor Buckley
In
the coming days I will highlight individual pieces, give some
background information and will post more images. The best way to
see the work is of course to come in and see the exhibitions!
Press this link to go straight to the Mooney goes Wild web page. Information on this evenings programme and how to listen back using the RTE Radio Player will be posted there either later this evening or tomorrow. https://www.rte.ie/radio1/mooney/
Sculptural installation in the Oregon Maple in Library Square, 2017
During
the 2017 exhibition Olivia Hassett created a tendon-like sculptural
installation in one of the large Oregon Maples, which collapsed last
June. These yellow lycra fabric pieces mirrored the lines of the
cable bracing wire system that helped support some of the heavier
branches of the tree. Imagery from SEM images taken by Clodagh
Dooley of the internal cellular structure of the tree was printed by
the artist onto the lycra fabric before it was stretched between the
branches.
2017 solo performance Olivia Hassett, lycra sculptural tendon and Oregon Maple
For the 2019 exhibition Olivia decided to re engage with the ‘lycra tendon sculptures’ in another solo performance this time with the Oregon Maple embedded in the Parson’s building. Hassett used two of the tendon-like pieces during the solo performance work that formed part of the Trinity College Trees Exhibition launch event.
Hassett
began the performance draped in the fabric works from 2017. The
performance took place in the external first floor part of the
Parson’s building extension.
An
important part of the performance included the attaching and
stretching of the fabric pieces from the podium of the building to
and around the trunk of the Oregon Maple tree that is embedded and
surrounded by the building itself. The connection between the
building and the tree and the support provided by the stretched
fabric was only possible during the performance and for a short
period after.
The
main focus of this performative work was Hassett’s continued
engagement with water retaining gel as a material. As we know water
and the lack of it was highlighted as being one of the key concerns
for the trees of TCD. In actual fact David Hackett mentioned that
adding water retaining gel to the soil of some of the trees showing
signs of dehydration was one of the options open to the grounds
staff to help keep the trees healthy. Having used this material
before in previous performances Hassett was used to working with and
was quite familiar with it’s transformative properties. When fully
engorged with water the crystals weigh up to 100 times more than in
their original crystalline form. The process of fast hydration and
the slow return of the water to the soil is one that can occur
numerous times over the life of the material, which is estimated to
be about three years.
When
Hassett began to workshop and think about what elements she wanted to
engage with performatively during this exhibition water retaining gel
was the obvious place to start. At the beginning of the performance
last week she lifted in and placed two soft plastic buckets half
filled with the gel beside the tree on the first floor. She then
proceeded to slowly drop, squeeze and deposit the gel onto the
grating that surrounds, protects and allows rain to percolate through
to the roots of the Oregon Maple tree on the ground floor. Over a
period of ten minutes or so Hassett continued to drop and walk on the
mounds of water retaining gel forcing the material to seep and fall
through the grating onto and into the installation of tube
sculptures, which enabled the gel to funnel down to the roots below.
Over the course of the exhibition this gel will continue to hydrate and dehydrate in response to the weather weakening and altering the installation of paper tubes surrounding the Oregon Maple. This transformation of material is of particular interest to the artist and is also replicated in the her choice of paper as a material for the installation of tubes. She does not know how the paper sculptures will fare during the course of the four week exhibition, maybe they will delaminate, buckle and fail as a result of repeated rain showers or maybe they will survive in some shape or other. This element of working with and adapting to the unknown in nature is therefore mirrored in a small way through the choice of her materials. More images to follow from the installation…
In addition to the paper tube installation already in place on the ground floor, Hassett has also added one of the fabric tendon-like yellow lycra pieces from the 2017 exhibition. For this installation she has stretched it from the floor up through the grating on the first floor and ending up enveloping the tree trunk above. More images to follow…..
I have already posted a blog about the architectural extension to the Parsons building designed by Grafton Architects. Since I started working with David Taylor in 2013 I have always been interested in how the original and extension to the Parsons building were designed to abut each other.
After spending some time looking at the buildings and more specifically the extension from numerous viewpoints I really grew to appreciate the lines created by the Architects’ designs and how the architecture encapsulated and protects the Oregon Maple tree from the full brunt of any storms that occur.
I spent a good amount of time a month or so ago photographing both the interior of the parsons building where the old building is visible inside the new extension and from the outside. I am still drawn to the area where bricks from the original 19th Century building were deliberately preserved and are on display in the main corridor. The idea that where both building meet is visible inside and the fact that this outside of one building in now part of the inside space draws me to think of notions of liminal, between spaces where time and memory are layered, preserved and celebrated.
I spent a considerable amount of time photographing this area from a variety of angles. I have chosen one of these images to include as part of a light box piece in the exhibition.
Where the two buildings met outside was not as visually interesting for me. I was more taken by the area where the Oregon Maple and the new extension met.
There was one particular exterior image that caught my eye and I decided to do some line drawings to represent it. I was keen to engage with the idea of in between spaces and layers to reflect the notions that the building bring about for me.
I decided to start by drawing on different types, grades and sizes of tracing paper. Many many hours and drawing later I was happy with some of the results. The pieces I have chosen to include in the exhibition are in fact drawn on cork board and will be installed either inside or beside the noticeboards in the Parsons building space.
The drawings on tracing paper I have decided to use in a different way. In many ways I think they liken architectural drawings and I decided to play on this and extend the representation to roll them up and use them like pillars, all be it deliberately weak ones that might fail and crumple at some point during the exhibition, a fact that I am happy may occur. This of course would mirror some of conversations between David Taylor and I over the years and more specifically some of his recent scientific research. The light box that they are installed on emanates a gentle light from inside the rolled paper illuminating the drawing, which is layered on itself.
Again more images to follow after the installation is up.
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