2006
Prunus, ceramics, LED lights, stainless steel
500 x 500 x 600 cm
De Triangel, Aalten, NL
Commissioned by: Kunst en Bedrijf
Produced for: Municipality of Aalten
Supported by: Mondriaan Fonds
Execution: Struktuur 68, Kamp & van Gulik
Artist: Fleur van den Berg
With thanks to GSG Architects for the excellent collaboration
In the heart of a new school building in De Triangel hangs an inverted tree: poow mood boom. Written in lowercase, the title can be mirrored and turned around to remain the same, just like the tree itself turns the world upside down: roots reaching into the air, branches pointing to the ground. For children, who often see things differently, the upside-down tree becomes a symbol of imagination and change. It sets life and growth in motion against the static presence of stone, suggesting a universe in which everything is connected.
The tree is alive with senses: branches sprout ears that listen, fruits take the shape of eyes, and leaves resemble whispering tongues. It becomes a “hear, see, and be silent” tree, full of associations with knowledge, secrecy, and play. Hanging like a chandelier, its lights recall sun, moon, and stars, bringing a constellation of wonder into the school.
The idea grew out of workshops in which children drew their visions of other worlds and strange creatures. From their imagination emerged the form of the hanging tree, installed during the summer and ready to welcome them at the opening of the new school year.
