At SculptureFest annual openings, dancers engage creatively with each piece that has been installed. In this clip, Tracey Penfield and dance partner Chelsea Palin performed a spontaneous piece in “The Forest Within.” Filmed by Edie Farwell and edited by Cedar Farwell, with original music, “Anna’s Waltz,” by Seth Houston.
Daniel plays Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata on my piece, “Tree Songs,” in a video by friend Colleen Bozuwa.
“Tree Songs” is comprised of saplings I painted white and screwed to a piano I painted black. By attaching saplings to the piano, it appears to have the forest reclaim it, or perhaps people will see the piano as growing among a bunch of saplings. There is a beautiful rhythm to a grove of saplings clustered in a forest. The repetition of these vertical elements should compliment the black and white keys of the piano.
The piece was installed outside the Montshire Museum in Norwich, Vermont for the month of July. It was part of Dartmouth College’s celebration of the Hopkins Center for the Arts’ 50th anniversary, “Hands on Pianos.” Mine is one of 50 pianos that were altered by artists and installed throughout the Upper Valley. See more images of the creative process on the official Hands on Pianos website and in a previous post on this blog.