DAY 39
05.13.07
TREE 45At another rest stop, this time in West Virginia pretty close to the WV/KY line, I chose a tree right out in front by the parking lot. It wasn’treally planned ’cause I still had my nice shoes and pants on and no ribbon to mark it. So I pissed and then shimmied up. It was just getting dark and the rest stop wasn’t too crowded so no one really saw me go up. I got up decently high and paused for reflection. I grabbed a leaf and figured I should climb back down so my family doesn’t wonder what happened to me. When I jumped down they were right there. We got in the car and drove off and it wasn’t till much later that I realized I had forgotten to get my camera out and take a picture of the tree. I guess it’s better to forget the picture than to forget to climb.
5-13-08: The picture of the tree above was not actually taken on the day that I first climbed this tree. It was late, dark, and still at the time when I was not taking the camera with me up into the tree. We stopped, I peed, and then climbed. When I came down, my family was right there and I just got into the car and we drove off. It wasn’t till much later that I realized that I had forgotten to take one. Then, just this last February, I went back to West Virginia to visit my sister and we stopped on the way back and I snapped this shot. Hence the tree has no leaves and I have a leaf from that first climb.Yesterday I hung out with Charlotte and Will. We drove to Tyler Park off Baxter Ave. and we played follow the leader. Then they watched as I climbed this large tree. It was quite the challenge and I did not get to the top. But it was very enjoyable despite the scratched up arms. I also broke a branch on another tree when I attempted to climb it and failed. Anyway, here are some pictures from my climb:
Author: Todd Smith
Hi! I am an interdisciplinary artist and committed educator.
From 2007-2010 I climbed a tree everyday and documented the project with photography, video and writing on this blog. I am revisiting the trees and writing again starting March 2018. Stay tuned.
My work considers our collective impact on the urban environment. Projects range from community-based, data-driven projects interpreting bike usage into sound, photography and video series exploring human movement through urban structures and green spaces, and interactive sculptures that vary in their use of found materials, analog technologies, and emerging digital media.
I currently teach a variety of 2D, 3D and digital subjects at universities in the Louisville, Kentucky area.
