Project Details
- Project Name
- Kokedama Forest
- Location
-
1500 Pattison Avenue &, S Broad St,
19145
PA
- Other
- Nomad Studio
- Client/Owner
- Philadelphia Flower Show
- Project Scope
- Preservation/Restoration
- Size
- 1,000 sq. feet
- Year Completed
- 2021
- Shared by
- Nomad Studio
- Team
-
Laura Santín, Designer
William Roberts, Designer
- Consultants
-
Fabrication and Construction: Timber Forge Woodworks,Other: Kazumi Garden,Other: Pinelands Nursery
- Project Status
- Built
- Room or Space
- Exteriors
Project Description
Kokedama Forest is a 1,000 SQF miniature sculptural forest consisting of more than 1,200 forestry seedling kokedamas nested within an inverted dome carved out from a fragile and intricate metal network. Acting as a green amphitheater, the visitor is both a spectator and a protagonist which is simultaneously embraced by its peaceful parlance and invited to actively question her/his role at the center of that symbolic arena.
Guests are welcomed to enter the micro-woodland and be surrounded by the levitating kokedamas: hundreds of seedlings proudly displaying their intimate relationship with soil supported by a 7.5 feet high three-dimensional metal structure. This assemblage is woven with steel inviting the contradictory blend of strength and delicacy that is implicit in all living networks.
With Kokedama Forest, William E. Roberts and Laura Santín, founding partners of Nomad Studio, present a visual reflection upon the hidden importance of soil dwellers and how their indissoluble partnership with plants creates a suitable habitat for all of us. Soil is one of the key habitats of the planet which too often is undervalued despite being indispensable.
Kokedama Forest has received exceptional recognition from both the audience and the organization, being honored with a total of three awards: The Gold Medal, The Governor’s Trophy for the Landscape major exhibit that demonstrates most innovative or unique design and the Special Achievement Award of the Garden Club Federation of Pennsylvania.
A sustainable installation with a second life
As part of the project philosophy, after its run in the Philadelphia Flower Show, ending on June 13, Kokedama Forest will have a second life becoming a part of the collection at NorthPark Center in Dallas, Texas.
In regards to the hundreds of native seedlings currently on display, they will be adopted by Tyler Arboretum, located in the heart of Delaware County, a historical organization whose mission is to preserve, enhance, and share their heritage, collections, and landscapes, to create and inspire stewards of the natural world.
