The Buckthorn Menace, a large-scale sculptural installation created by Northfield residents and students under the direction of Minneapolis artist Jim Proctor, will open at Carleton College on Saturday, October 13. The community celebration, scheduled from 3 to 5 p.m., will take place at the installation site in the Cowling Arboretum—the “upper arb,” located off the East Second Street entrance to the arboretum. This special event is free and open to the public.
The installation is the final stage of this unique project, combining volunteerism, education, and creative expression. Since mid-September, participants have been pulling buckthorn weeds at both Carleton and St. Olaf colleges, then using the wood and roots of this destructive plant species to construct sculptures resembling giant dandelions in full seed, a visual choice representing the rampant dispersal of the invasive buckthorn shrub. “Dandelions are not a huge environmental problem, but buckthorn is,” Proctor explains. “However, buckthorn is invisible to most people. I want to create a connection with something that is familiar.”
True works of public art, the sculptures simultaneously serve to educate people about the environmental problem of buckthorn and to propose community collaboration as a solution. The installation will stand for one full year so that it can be viewed during all four seasons, intrinsically shaped by nature as it contributes to its preservation.
An Ohio native, Jim Proctor earned a studio art degree from St. Olaf College in 1992. His mixed media use of plant material in nature paintings eventually led to a transition to three-dimensional sculptures that are constructed fully from plants. Much of his current work consists of miniature sculptures in which he combines different species of plants to create a visual representation with social or environmental symbolism. Having previously erected Buckthorn Menace installations in surrounding locations through a FORECAST Public Artworks grant, he has now brought the project and the message to Northfield.
The Carleton installation site is located in the “Stork Forest” area of the “upper arb”: follow the paved path at the end of East Second Street (near Bell Field) across the bridge and uphill; the site is on the top of the hill as you round the bend in the direction of the Recreation Center. For more information, visit the Buckthorn Menace website at http://apps.carleton.edu/campus/gallery/buckthorn/.
The Buckthorn Menace project is co-sponsored by Carleton College and St. Olaf College, in association with the Environmental Quality Commission of Northfield.
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