Room to Grow
Freedom Baird
Native plants, cast-off furniture, spackle, house paint
Room to Grow will be on view through September 29, 2019
The Minuteman Bikeway is an ideal place to spend time in the world of green growing things, and to consider issues of environmental health and sustainability, as well as how humans and nature interact. With the installation Room to Grow, local artist Freedom Baird offers a space to consider and talk about how human habitat and nature intertwine, literally!
Room To Grow is located on the edge of the Minuteman Bikeway just west of Linwood Street near Spy Pond Park. Baird has selected plants that are native and non-invasive, and several support pollinators. The simple pieces of furniture were salvaged from curbside trash and saved from landfill; Baird transformed them with several layers of paint. By juxtaposing native plants with human-made objects, Baird raises questions regarding the origins of the elements used to construct Room to Grow: what sort of trees were this chair, this table, this dresser, before we turned them into furniture? From which rocks in the earth did the metal in this lamp and this bed-frame come from? From which drops of crude oil was this paint derived?
Nature creates, and humans create. And when it comes down to it, humans are part of nature. So how do these materials we use and the objects we create fit into the biosphere?
We invite you to join this conversation. Look for Baird here this summer as artist-in-residence organized by Arlington Public Art and the Arlington Commission on Arts and Culture. She will be tending the installation and discussing humans and nature with visitors! Audio Tour is available here.
SCHEDULE ON SITE
Stop by and say hello, have a conversation, and watch Room to Grow evolve. Freedom Baird will be on-site, weather permitting, most Sundays in July, August and September from 3 to 6 pm.
Sunday, July 7
Sunday, July 14
Sunday, July 21
Sunday, August 4
Sunday, August 18
Sunday, August 25
Sunday, September 8
Sunday, September 15
Sunday Sept 22, 4 to 6 pm: Community Potluck and Closing Reception
Thanks to our supporters
PATHWAYS is supported by grants from the Arlington Cultural Council, a local agency, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency, and the National Park Service. Additional support generously provided by donations from individual supporters of the arts and the Town of Arlington.
