eLDER MOTHER

STORYTELLER AND TREE OF LIGHT
black rock city 2023
upcoming: golden Gate Park, SF

Elder Mother is a magic, monumental, awe-inspiring, shade-bearing tree that moves in the wind and speaks through the language of light and color. The 30-ft metal sculpted tree carries a 25-ft canopy offering a place for animals to gather day and night with ever-changing, interactive illumination.  

STRUCTURE

The sculpture is made from mild steel, steel tubes, LED light cubes, and magic. The trunk is a sturdy, low-poly geometric structure created from large, flat steel panels. 3072 individually addressable LED cubes hang from Elder Mother’s branches, and can be programmed to display nearly infinite patterns across a billion colors. The structural base is integrated into the tree’s trunk and branches, allowing it to seamlessly rising from the Earth.

Stories

Elder Mother’s six speakers tell over 28 hours of fairytales, folklore, and personal anecdotes across 26 different languages. Her name and function is inspired by the Hans Christian Anderson story “The Elder-Tree Mother”.

Video provided by Reza Tabesh
Pictures from William Tracy, Jamen Percy, Elanor Preger, Mark Fromson