Chronicle of Higher Education
07-20-07
When a Tree Falls at Iowa State, Students Make Art
When a tornado destroyed a historic scarlet oak at Iowa State University,
Nancy A. Surprenant could not bring herself to shred it for mulch or chop it up
for firewood.
That is what usually happens to fallen trees on the campus. But this hardwood,
62 feet tall and more than 12 feet around, was the largest of its kind in the state.
Ms. Surprenant, a campus landscape architect, wanted to find a way to "pay a
tribute to the legacy of that tree."
She called Christopher J. Martin, director of the university's wood-design
program. He went to look at the tree, one of dozens downed in the tornado two
years ago. He liked what he saw.
Mr. Martin had already agreed to build several pieces of furniture for Iowa State's
new Christian Petersen Art Museum. And Lynette L. Pohlman, director of
university museums, was keen on the symbolism of furniture made from a
campus tree.
A crew chopped down the historic oak in roughly eight-foot pieces, according to
Mr. Martin's specifications, and a few of his advanced students presented
designs to Ms. Pohlman. Initially she wanted identical benches, but several of the
proposals impressed her. Six benches, some sleek and contemporary, others
more rustic; two desks; and one lectern, all made from the scarlet oak and local
walnut, became part of the museum's collection this spring.
"They have received just about as much attention as the other scheduled
artworks," Ms. Pohlman says.
The project has led to others. This week Iowa State will install, in a new wing of
its Memorial Union, wooden benches students designed and built from red oaks
cut down to make way for the addition. Mr. Martin hopes to store wood for
employees to commission more work from his students. Using campus trees is a
welcome departure from what he calls "the grocery-store idea that we don't know
where our stuff really comes from."
For Ben Ryan, one of the designers, the reaction of his family and friends to
seeing his bench in the museum was the most fulfilling part of the project. He
says they finally took his intended career seriously. They realized, he says, that
"this could be for real," instead of "just another art project."