Dan suggested an early morning visit to the new outdoor sculpture exhibit at Morton Arboretum to enjoy it in new light and light crowds. When he saw this one, he said it was his sister-in-law Kelly. It sure looks like her last month in her last month of holding on to Hailey.
The sculptor Daniel Popper named this work Umi, which means life in Swahili and mother in Arabic. You can see the small Virginia Creepers planted near her roots. It will be great to see how this changes as Mother Nature envelopes Mother Nature.
Umi is one of the five sculptures by South African Daniel Popper at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois. It’s the largest ever exhibit of his work. You walk through the trails and among the trees to encounter these.
Heartwood
Heartwood opens to you to reveal patterns inside. Can you see what shows?
Can you see the fingerprint on one side and the tree rings on the other?
A closer encounter with prints is on the one piece that does not have a human face. Hands, arms, vines and roots envelope you in Basilica.
Basilica
I think the oaks surrounding are enjoying the exhibit as well. No one on Instagram reacted to my speculation that Popper named the piece made from silica of a friend named Basil. Thumbs up?
Here’s a brief video with Popper: “Accessing the depth of what it means to be human, what it means to be sentient, what it means to be alive, what it means to be here on this planet.”
Sentient
“If we start to look deep, deep inside our human nature, we’ll find that it’s extremely close to the natural world around us.” Daniel Popper
Hopefully, you might’ve had a chance to see the Trolls while they were at the Arboretum. They’re gone now, and these five pieces will be here for a year or so, changing with the seasons, and a couple of then joining with the vines planted with them.
Hallow
So much to enjoy with the detail, massiveness, mystery, and engagement.
And open your heart.
