Death of the Garden Gnome: This work features a truncated tree trunk upon which a present-absent gnome is hinted at. The dead gnome appears to have been swallowed up and melted into the tree stump, and what remains of it is a puddle of a shiny and “cultivated” porcelain glazed substance. This represents the encounter between untamed and wild nature on the one hand and the cultivated, well-kept and pruned garden on the other. One is spontaneous, growing and wilting according to the seasons and the cycles of nature. The other is well cared for and controlled by the actions of the gardener. The garden is the representation of culture. On the one hand it is a place of encounter with nature for the weary urban resident who seeks refuge from the burning asphalt—a corner of beauty in the urban ugliness. On the other hand it is marked by artificial and European signs of culture, like a fountain, a bench, a gazebo and garden gnomes. The gnome is a reminder of the tradition of artificial decoration in gardens. The work hints at the hopelessness and manifest the inevitable failure in transforming what is natural and wild into something restrained and controlled.

Death of a Garden Gnome / sculpture / 2014 / tree stump, plaster, polyurethane foam, epoxy / 0.45 X 0.40 m