1990; cast bronze, cast stone, pavers; 6’H x 102’W x 62’D; Bemidji State University; Bemidji, MN. Commissioned by the Minnesota Percent for Art in Places program.
Intended as a gathering space for students, this work reflects the iconography and history of the northern Minnesota landscape. The sculptural elements suggest water (boat benches), sky (dome/mound with star drawings), and the landscape (cast bronze branches). Inscribed into the bronze branches are the poetic journal writings of Joseph Nicollet as he explored the Mississippi headwaters region. Detailing the cause and effect found in nature, he concludes with the destiny of the environment upon the mapping of the region by 19th century explorers.
© Janet Lofquist