Burls Will Be Burls

Burls Will Be Burls

Two of the installation's pieces in 2015
Artist Bruce Conkle
Year 2009 (2009)
Type Sculpture
Medium Bronze, cast concrete
Location Portland, Oregon, United States
Owner City of Portland and Multnomah County Public Art Collection courtesy of the Regional Arts & Culture Council
Website www.bruceconkle.com/burls/burlshome.htm

Burls Will Be Burls is an outdoor 2009 bronze sculpture by American artist Bruce Conkle, located in Portland, Oregon.

Description and history

Detail of a snowman
Plaque for the sculpture

Burls Will Be Burls was designed by Bruce Conkle and completed in 2009 as a tribute to snowmen and to the forests of the Pacific Northwest. It is installed at the intersection of Southwest 6th Avenue and West Burnside. The art installation consists of three cast bronze figures representing "what might happen when a snowman melts and nourishes a nearby living tree", as "water is absorbed by the roots and carries the spirit of the melted snowman up into the tree where it manifests itself as burls".[1][2]

The three snowmen measure 71 inches (180 cm) x 16 inches (41 cm) x 17 inches (43 cm), 98 inches (250 cm) x 12 inches (30 cm) x 12 inches (30 cm), and 72 inches (180 cm) x 17 inches (43 cm) x 19 inches (48 cm), respectively.[1] According to TriMet, Conkle considers snowmen the "proverbial 'canary in the coal mine' for climate change" because they must "evolve" in order to survive a slight increase in temperature. The work is part of the City of Portland and Multnomah County Public Art Collection courtesy of the Regional Arts & Culture Council.[3] It has been included in at least one published walking tour of Portland.[4]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Public Art Search: Burls Will Be Burls". Regional Arts & Culture Council. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Burls Will Be Burls". Public Art Archive. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Burls Will Be Burls, 2009". cultureNOW. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
  4. ↑ Cook, Sybilla Avery (April 2, 2013). Walking Portland, Oregon. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 64. Retrieved November 26, 2014.

External links

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