Ghost Forest - Tempe Arizona
N 33° 25.808 W 111° 57.382
12S E 411094 N 3699381
Riverside Office Plaza's addition to the Tempe Art in Private Development program.
Waymark Code: WM8DF1
Location: Arizona, United States
Date Posted: 03/16/2010
Views: 10
The artist has been inspired by both the former raging river edge and the name Riverside to create a memory of what was once along the former river-turned-lake. When the river was an active habitat, significant bosques of mesquite, willow and cottonwood with accents of reeds and cattails were fed by the rich soil and abundant waters where wildlife once flourished. This piece is, therefore, a celebration of the river.
The rusted steel poles placed at numerous angles and heights pay homage to the bosques that once lined the river, while abstracted birds are positioned on similar rusted poles to appear to be in flight toward a new water body: the Town Lake. In addition, over-scaled, rust-finished steel cattails inside a mass planting of Giant Hesperaloe recall the riparian ground plane of a river’s side. The river stones that once defined a beach have been gathered and are held in place by a rusted steel grid work in the form of retaining walls which hold the building pads.
The retained layers are planted with masses of Evening Primrose, Deer Grass and Desert Museum Palo Verde to create a beautiful desert garden. This garden, or outdoor room, is defined by a grand lawn in the midst of the bosque homage, the result of which creates a contrast between the former and the now deceased riverside bosque and a renewed fresh plane of green grass, celebrating the renewal of life on the riverside.
The project was funded through City of Tempe Capital Improvement Project Percent for Art Funds made available through the Tempe transit tax.
Title: Ghost Forest
Artist: David Brant
Media (materials) used: Concrete, rusted steel, concrete masonry unit, river stone, gabion walls and planting
Location (specific park, transit center, library, etc.): Riverside office plaza
Date of creation or placement: 2007 and 2008
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