Garry Barker: tree listening: a ceramic installation

Abstract

Tree listening is a ceramic installation that is designed to provide an entry point for conversations with museum visitors. Based on the idea that art can become a focal point for conversations, this body of work (19 ceramic pieces, located at various points within a garden) was designed with the York city art gallery garden in mind. The ears were made from local clay sources, including the same terracotta clay source that was used for the bricks that line the edges of the museum's garden. The work furthers the artist Garry Barker's concern to use conversations with people to both instigate new work and to provide starting points for new audiences to engage with art as a way to extend their appreciation of the world and how issues such as politics, global warming and emigration impact on everyday experiences. This installation was installed twice, the second time in spring 2017 because of the popularity with which it was received the year before. A planned walk was added to the piece in 2017 and the artist led a walking tour that was scripted in response to conversations with the museum head gardener.