Subscribe

Lynden Blog

March 19, 2015 | Willy

This post is the first in a series by Junior Grounds Manager Weston Wagner tracking the behavior of wood ducks at Lynden.

Wood duck hen on nest
A wood duck hen on a nest at Lynden in 2014

March 19, 2015 - I witnessed the first pair of wood ducks of the year today. They were scoping out one of the newly installed boxes that we placed over the water. Wood ducks usually show up around the 1st of April or when the ice starts disappearing from the lake. There was just enough shore ice melted for the wood ducks to start to come and check things out for possible nesting sites. We put up the 3 wood duck boxes over the water on March 13, including an additional box at a new location. The new box is located over the water not too far from where other successful nest box sites are established. Wood ducks are not very territorial and do not fight over nesting locations.

I recently attended a nest box building workshop at the UWM field station. There were a handful of very knowledgeable people hosting the event. They mentioned that wood ducks are so non-territorial that you could have two wood duck boxes mounted back to back on the same 4 x 4 post and wood ducks would possibly use both boxes as nesting sites in harmony without conflict.

IMG_0005
Weston building a wood duck box

IMG_0001_1
Lynden's wood duck boxes, built by Weston & Bob Retko

IMG_0003
Installing a wood duck box

IMG_0007
Possible nesting site for wood ducks

March 1, 2015 | Anonymous

There is definitely more light. It's not just that it's bouncing off the expanses of snow; the days are longer, starting earlier and ending later.

February 27, 2015 | Willy

This post is by Pegi Christiansen, a Lynden artist in residence through October 15. Learn more about her Distance project here.

One of my favorite temporary art pieces at Lynden is Sightseer by local artist Brian Nigus. For Lynden's Winter Carnival I proposed to roam Lynden in the fall, save what I collected, and create a “Winter Forest” display inside his “portable think-space.”

Jeremy Stepien was a student of mine at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design in the nineties. For “Winter Forest” Jeremy, Lynden’s Director of Education, was my teacher and advisor. He asked this important question: “What will happen to the display at the end of the carnival?” It took several months before I came up with the solution.

In October I met with Brian to discuss “Winter Forest.” No one had mounted a display inside Sightseer since it came to Lynden last summer (Brian had made the piece in 2011 while he was a student at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and it had been used in various ways before arriving in Milwaukee). Brian requested that everything I placed in Sightseer come from Lynden.

I made four major collection trips to Lynden during the fall. Except for cutting wild weeds, I would only collect what I found on the ground. The trips were exhilarating. I would always lose track of where I was and find plants I had never come across before and wonder, “What’s this?”

In January I made three planning trips to Lynden. I spent time inside Sightseer and measured it carefully. Jeremy showed me all the types of items, like vases, I could use to help with the display and I experimented with eight basic designs before I selected the one I wanted.

On January 30th, I started making “Winter Forest.” Naomi Cobb, Lynden’s naturalist, asked me whether it was primarily planned or being made on the spot. I told her it was a blend of both. Sightseer only has one door and is less than six feet wide. I had to plan carefully because I needed to work from the far end toward the door. Once I arranged an area, I could no longer reach it to make changes. At the same time, I was totally winging it. I spent 25 hours over five days musing inside Brian’s very special “think-space” and my head popped with ideas about where to place particular items I had collected.

DoorView
Winter Forest

It was at this point that Naomi told me that she was going to have a bonfire during the Winter Carnival. What a perfect conclusion to "Winter Forest": to burn all the branches and wild weeds during the final hour. Jeremy's question was answered. I spent twelve days making “Winter Forest.” It would be on view for five hours, and then it would become ashes.

Eddee2
Winter Forest, photo: Eddee Daniel

Jeremy2
Winter Forest, photo: Jeremy Stepien

At 3 pm on February 7 as the Winter Carnival wound down, friends and carnival visitors, as well as several children very eager to throw things on the bonfire, gathered around me. I was alone for those twelve days of making, so it couldn’t have been sweeter to have a group of children and friends carrying everything over to the flames as we unmade "Winter Forest."

bonfire_edaniel
Bonfire, photo: Eddee Daniel

Sweetest of all was a child, Caroline May, who named the dried dead toad “Hubertus.” I saved Hubertus for her and brought it to her home. “Winter Forest” lives on.

HubertusJ
Hubertus, photo: Jeremy Stepien

Hubertus
Hubertus, photo: Eddee Daniel

February 12, 2015 | Willy

This is the fifth in a series of blog posts by Pegi Christiansen, who is a Lynden artist in residence through October 2015. As part of her project, Distance, Pegi will accompany people, in groups of up to three, on their first trip to Lynden. She will pick them up, drive them out, take a walk with them, and bring them back. As part of the excursion, she will ask some questions about distance. If you are interested in participating in this aspect of Pegi's project, please call 414-446-8794 or email info@lyndensculpturegarden.org and mention you are interested in a “distance visit.”

The instant I picked up Wendy Hamilton, Healthy Neighborhoods Program Manager for Sherman Park Community Association on Fond du Lac Avenue November 10, I became lost in thought. My father was a mapmaker for General George S. Patton during World War II and I pride myself on using real maps (not GPS) and getting where I need to go without making mistakes. However, I was so caught up in my conversation with Wendy (on a very easy drive straight north on Sherman Boulevard) that I had to backtrack twice.

When I am with visitors at Lynden, along with talking about distance, the one other thing I need to do is make sure to take a picture. I forgot to do this. Instead, Wendy sent me a photo from inside her home in Sherman Park. It gives you a sense of how vibrant she is.

Wendy_dist5_cropped

I have known Wendy since 2007, but have never spent time with her outside of the SPCA office. I knew it would be special to have one-on-one contact with her. Just like with the planners from West Allis a week earlier, we talked about distance nonstop, but in a way I never imagined. Wendy had carefully considered the topic and knew what she wanted to say. I was riveted.

Once at Lynden, Wendy told me, “Distance equals peace.” Wendy grew up in Sherman Park and lives in the neighborhood now. She said, “I am a city girl and love it, but I also care about being close to the earth.” She believes everyone should be able to experience both the urban and the rural. This means taking her two daughters, who want action and excitement, to places where teenager Afrika first says, “This is too quiet.” Afrika soon starts to soak it in and imagines her daily life in these places and spaces. Fourth grader Nadiatier believes they have left the state when they drive to a rural community.

Wendy is searching for ways to bring the untroubled and natural environment of Lynden to Sherman Park. Living in an urban environment can be stressful. Wendy believes bringing tranquility to Sherman Park will “bring peace to the landscape of people’s minds” as well.

We discussed lots of ideas. It would be possible to create prairies in vacant lots. You could plant a dense forest area in Sherman Park. You could create spaces that would attract birds and other wildlife right in people’s backyards.

Lynden could be a part of this process. Lynden's education staff offers field trips for school groups that invite students and teachers to observe and inquire about place, nature, and art. Participants then explore ways to bring the things learned at Lynden back to their own schools and neighborhoods.

February 11, 2015 | Willy

This is the fourth in a series of blog posts by Pegi Christiansen, who is a Lynden artist in residence through October 2015. As part of her project, Distance, Pegi will accompany people, in groups of up to three, on their first trip to Lynden. She will pick them up, drive them out, take a walk with them, and bring them back. As part of the excursion, she will ask some questions about distance. If you are interested in participating in this aspect of Pegi's project, please call 414-446-8794 or email info@lyndensculpturegarden.org and mention you are interested in a “distance visit.”

These visits keep surprising me. On November 5, I picked up City of West Allis planners Shaun Mueller and Bart Griepentrog. During our two hours together that morning, I didn’t ask any of the questions from my list. We discussed distance in all sorts of new ways.

WestAllis_dist4
L-R: Bart Griepentrog and Shaun Mueller

I reside 23 miles away from Lynden in Greenfield. Since moving there in 2009, I spend more time in West Allis and find it intriguing. West Allis has more history and breadth than most Milwaukee suburban communities. We stopped in at Executive Director Polly Morris’s office and she agrees. She has a background in history and when she moved to Milwaukee in 1987 one of the first places she visited was the former Allis-Chalmers site in West Allis. One of the reasons I asked Bart and Shaun to come to Lynden with me is because, like Lynden, West Allis is an undiscovered treasure for too many people.

When I summarized the history of Lynden on the drive out, Bart remembered hearing that the sculptures at Lynden almost ended up at the Milwaukee Art Museum. We asked Polly about this. She said after Jane Bradley Pettit died in 2001, her descendants debated donating the sculptures to the MAM. The family decided to open Lynden to the public instead.

We also spoke with Polly about former artist in residence Roy Staab, who lives in West Allis. For the city’s 100th anniversary in 2006, the mayor commissioned Roy to create Fountain in the Sky at the West Allis City Hall. Roy made the temporary sculpture out of weeds bound with jute and plastic cording. As we started our walk, I suggested West Allis could designate a permanent site where Roy could create a series of temporary installations.

I asked Shaun and Bart about ways in which, as planners, they think about distance. It turns out they are thinking about distance all the time.
--How far do people live from shopping, restaurants, and entertainment?
--How much time does it take for people to walk or drive to various locations?
--Potential employers want to know how far away potential employees live and whether it is easy to get to the airport.

Distance can be political as well as geographical. In the four-county Milwaukee area, some people want distance from the city, which increases segregation. West Allis needs to alert citizens about certain land use changes happening in their neighborhood, but only if they live within 200 feet. If you live outside this arbitrary zone, you are not directly notified.

The final stop on our walk was by my favorite cluster of permanent sculptures. In the area just south of the bridge are two Linda Howard sculptures (I enjoy watching the way they interact with the sun), Isaac Witkin’s Kumo (it makes me laugh), and Deborah Butterfield’s Hara (the horse looks like it is made out of wood, but it’s really bronze).

It turns out Shaun and Bart care about clusters, too. People tend to come to West Allis for one thing--perhaps the farmers market or the Wisconsin State Fair. West Allis wants to encourage people to explore a cluster of things. For example, after shopping at the West Allis Farmers Market, open May through November at 65th and National, what would it take to convince a person to check out Oniomania, a funky gift shop a block away at 6430 W. National?

On our way back to the parking lot, Bart challenged all my typical thinking about noise. Although Lynden is pastoral and serene, the sound of cars on Brown Deer Road, a state highway, is audible. Bart said that Cathedral Square, a one-block park in downtown Milwaukee, is actually quieter. “This is because people downtown have alternatives to using cars,” Bart explained. “They can walk or bike, and the cars downtown are driving 25 miles an hour and have to stop about every three blocks for lights.” Bart is frustrated by all the commuters on Brown Deer Road who, in order to escape the city to reach the small communities where they live, in Menomonee Falls or Germantown, destroy the calm for everyone in between.

February 1, 2015 | Anonymous

Snow at this time of year, especially in healthy quantities and with the prospect of below-freezing weather for the coming week, comes as good news at Lynden.

January 9, 2015 | Willy

This is the third in a series of blog posts by Pegi Christiansen, who is a Lynden artist in residence through October 2015. As part of her project, Distance, Pegi will accompany people, in groups of up to three, on their first trip to Lynden. She will pick them up, drive them out, take a walk with them, and bring them back. As part of the excursion, she will ask some questions about distance. If you are interested in participating in this aspect of Pegi's project, please call 414-446-8794 or email info@lyndensculpturegarden.org and mention you are interested in a “distance visit.”

On Wednesday morning, October 22, I visited Lynden with two more members of the Grand Avenue Club. Tuesday had been windy and overcast, but Wednesday was calm and the sun poked out now and then. With no wind, Cathy Litwin, Aaron Leverence and I could see the clouds and trees reflected in the pond.

I explained on the drive out that 4000 trees were planted at Lynden when it was converted from cornfields into a private garden for Harry and Peg Bradley in the 1930s (the sculptures didn't begin to arrive until 1962). Cathy told us she has a friend who plants a tree for every grandchild.

The first question I asked Aaron and Cathy was, “If you could use a Star Trek transporter so you could step in right now and arrive somewhere else immediately, who would you want to see?” I was delighted to hear from Aaron that scientists have teleported atoms. In the Netherlands this year three atoms were teleported about ten feet. Who knows what might be possible ten years from now?

Cathy currently has a niece in Argentina. She would want to go to there to “see what she’s seeing.”

Aaron, thirty years old, lives in Elm Grove and has a nine-year-old brother who lives in Cudahy. He wishes he could see him more often, but acknowledges that “distance makes the heart grow fonder.” As he reminded me, “Sometimes you take people who are close to you for granted.”

Cathy picked up some leaves from the ground. After she moved to Milwaukee, she would press leaves in a book and send them in letters to her godparents in Manitowoc, and they would send leaves back. Cathy and her sister-in-law in Minnesota exchange cards with each other. She likes choosing which card to send. She generally doesn’t keep the letters and cards she has received, instead anticipating new ones in the mailbox. Cathy is an acute observer of people's penmanship: “My godmother wrote large and clear,” she recalls. “My husband had swirly handwriting.”

I mentioned the photographers I know who used to live in Manitowoc, John Shimon and Julie Lindemann. It turns out they photographed a friend of Cathy's, Susan, and Susan’s daughter. “Everyone is connected in a smaller city,” she said. “A smaller city keeps you grounded.”

On our way back to the car we walked by a stunning stand of birches where I took a picture of Aaron and Cathy.

ByBirches_dist3

January 5, 2015 | Willy

This is the second in a series of blog posts by Pegi Christiansen, who is a Lynden artist in residence through October 2015. As part of her project, Distance, Pegi will accompany people, in groups of up to three, on their first trip to Lynden. She will pick them up, drive them out, take a walk with them, and bring them back. As part of the excursion, she will ask some questions about distance. If you are interested in participating in this aspect of Pegi's project, please call 414-446-8794 or email info@lyndensculpturegarden.org and mention you are interested in a “distance visit.”

Colleen Kassner is the type of person you can count on to share enthusiasm for an idea. Colleen is the Gallery Director for Gallery Grand at the Grand Avenue Club in downtown Milwaukee, where she also teaches art. The Grand Avenue Club provides adults with mental illness a place to come and participate in activities 365 days a year. When I emailed her about taking members to Lynden she responded, “A resounding yes!”

On the afternoon of October 21, Colleen and GAC members Deb Olson and Herbert Walker came with me to Lynden. Although chilly and windy, we had a spirited visit. Deb taught me a lot and asked good questions. She loves weeping willows, so I took a picture of her under one by the pond. The willow’s leaves remained green, though birch trees nearby had lost all their leaves. She recalled ironing leaves between pieces of wax paper when she was young. This inspired me to bring home some sunlight yellow gingko leaves to preserve.

DebWillow_dist2

Deb wanted to know what animals we might see. I mentioned coming upon a group of eight wild turkeys by George Sugarman’s yellow-painted aluminum sculpture Trio one morning. Deb told me there are wild turkeys where she lives at 20th and Layton, too. I never would have guessed this was possible near an expressway interchange.

One of the questions I have been asking people focuses on how you can feel more distance with someone in the same room than with someone miles away. “Some people are coldblooded and can’t warm up,” said Deb. “You can know them for years and years and not get close.” Deb can sense right away if she will be able to make a connection with someone she meets.

Herbert had a huge challenge overcoming distance. As a youth, his Aunt Ruby lived in Minneapolis. Her husband drove a bus and Herbert would ride the bus with him when he visited. They got divorced and Aunt Ruby moved to Arkansas. When Herbert was 21 he was visiting her and she had a heart attack right in front of him. No one else was home. He is 55 now and though Aunt Ruby is dead he has been able to sustain his relationship with her by seeing her children. Her son is a professional golfer and Herbert got to play a round with him. Just five years ago, he met her daughter for the first time.

Herbert was using a GAC camera to take pictures. In the second photograph for this post, he is sitting next to Deb, with Colleen standing to the side. They are at one of the highest spots at Lynden, where we went to view the grounds on this gray day.

DebHerbert2_dist2

After our walk, we warmed up in the Lynden gallery. As we looked at a painting, Colleen explained that in the Renaissance it took six months just to prepare a canvas for painting. The rabbit-skin glue and gesso took this long to dry. She is grateful for modern materials that allow her to paint right away.

January 1, 2015 | Anonymous

Lynden has reopened, fully decked out in a glorious layer of snow--enough for snowshoeing or cross-country skiing.

December 1, 2014 | Anonymous

My office windows, two facing south and the other two curving around to the west, frame my views of Lynden.


©2024 Lynden Sculpture Garden