CO2 Sequestration via Trees
2019
Silver Maple seedlings, wood, polycarbonate, shelves, LED grow lights
An octagonal domed greenhouse, built to mirror the dramatic skylight above sat at the crossing of four walkways in Conestoga Mall for one month as a part of CAFKA@ Conestoga Mall Program. This greenhouse was a temporary home to 2,606 silver maple seedlings (the number of seedlings was derived by estimating the artist’s personal, lifetime carbon footprint - 15,116 metric tonnes - and dividing that by the average lifetime carbon consumption of silver maples. The seedlings were sourced primarily from Dunnville area that were slated for removal by Haldimand County.
Following the exhibition, the seedlings were distributed to friends, family and Conestoga Mall customers for planting around the region. Thus the work is also partly in memorial to this former generation of trees. Planting these 2,600 seedlings acts as a sort of ecological penance as the trees grow effectively neutralize the artists carbon footprint. This is only the first iteration of the project with each subsequent generation enabling further removal of CO2 from the atmosphere.
Slideshow image credits via Conestoga Mall and Scott Lee Photography
