7’H x 58’ DIA. Cement block, hay, seed, wood. CATHERINE WHEEL derives its name from Catherine of Alexandria, a Christian martyr Its’ ambiguous form also recalls a cartwheel or child’s toy pinwheel.

 

Catherine Wheel consists of a hub at its center, with five radiating spokes. All spokes are single, bent walls except for one, which when entered, leads to the interior of the hub. The Wheel is constructed of dry cement block. Hay protrudes between blocks and in openings throughout the Wheel. The hub roof and all the top surfaces of the spokes are seeded for growth.

 

As travelers pass through the spoke, the vegetation brushes against them. They see trickles of light filtering through separations in the walls. It is a quiet, semi-dark,

sweet-smelling channel. Each step forward in the present becomes the past, anticipating the future. All occur at once – now.

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Commission: Kutztown University

Collaborators: Kutztown University Students

Photography: Jody Pinto