Carbon Cycle: An Earth Art Exhibit at the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden
The Pittsburgh Botanic Garden was created by the Horticultural Society of Western Pennsylvania on land that had been donated by the McGill family to Allegheny County. Much of the land had been damaged by coal mining, both underground and strip mining. The Botanic Garden has been working to reclaim this land for many years. The newest addition to the reclaimed gardens is the “Exhibit Garden”. This new 5 acre area increases the public area of the garden to 65 acres.
On October 1st The Pittsburgh Botanic Garden opened a new exhibit “Carbon Cycle: An Earth Art Exhibit”. It is located in the newly opened Exhibit Garden which was designed by landscape designer and artist W. Gary Smith, whose purpose is “to tell a story of transformation and rebirth, symbolizing the healing and evolution of the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden’s site from coal mine to garden.” The centerpiece of his thought provoking installation is a mound of coal surrounded by logs and a circular planting of a variety trees. A pond, serpentine trails and an outdoor classroom are also part of the new exhibit garden.
Materials used to create this new exhibit included:
15.65 tons of bituminous coal
14 cubic yard loads of soil
12 Black Cherry and Sassafras logs
450 locally grown trees including Swamp white oak, Black Cherry, Pagoda Dogwood, Black Chokeberry and Red Chokeberry.
Photos are from the opening celebration of the exhibit on September 30, 2021.
The link below takes you to more information about the exhibit and includes a video created by the artist that explains his process.
https://pittsburghbotanicgarden.org/carbon-cycle-an-earth-art-exhibit/
On October 1st The Pittsburgh Botanic Garden opened a new exhibit “Carbon Cycle: An Earth Art Exhibit”. It is located in the newly opened Exhibit Garden which was designed by landscape designer and artist W. Gary Smith, whose purpose is “to tell a story of transformation and rebirth, symbolizing the healing and evolution of the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden’s site from coal mine to garden.” The centerpiece of his thought provoking installation is a mound of coal surrounded by logs and a circular planting of a variety trees. A pond, serpentine trails and an outdoor classroom are also part of the new exhibit garden.
Materials used to create this new exhibit included:
15.65 tons of bituminous coal
14 cubic yard loads of soil
12 Black Cherry and Sassafras logs
450 locally grown trees including Swamp white oak, Black Cherry, Pagoda Dogwood, Black Chokeberry and Red Chokeberry.
Photos are from the opening celebration of the exhibit on September 30, 2021.
The link below takes you to more information about the exhibit and includes a video created by the artist that explains his process.
https://pittsburghbotanicgarden.org/carbon-cycle-an-earth-art-exhibit/
