first took flight 05.1998
an archive of primary activities 1998 through 2002
the Society for Arts + Ecology in Practice
bringing the power of the arts to sustainability
THE NEST
In situ on the grassy knoll outside the Roundhouse Community Centre in the heart of downtown Vancouver at False Creek North for almost a year, the Nest was desiged based on the architecture of Marsh Wrens, and constructed by artist and landscape architect Claire Bedat using waste cuttings from a botanical garden.
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The structure withstood snow, heavy rain, winter squalls - as well as the protests of neighbors in high-end condos and a scandalised Parks Board. Children and animals loved it. In the end, someone was sleeping in it. It smelled sweet and felt like home, a nest.
I would like to thank Beth Carruthers and Nelson Gray for inviting me in the making of the SongBird Project. As a participant I felt entirely supported and respected in the search and implementation of the Nest design. Growth is often assimilated to change - I changed during the making of this project and feel emotionally empowered and bounded to a greater cause: preserving biodiversity on Earth...
Claire Bédat - Landscape Architect & Creator of “the Nest” Public Art site installation