TREE CYCLES investigates the roles of trees in Chicago through  positioning growth, felling, fabrication, decay, and decomposition  as a set of active (and normal) urban and ecological processes in a  reconceptualized productive cityscape. We ask: How might we  engage the public with demonstrations of urban forestry initiatives  and dialogues around the environmental and social benefits of  nurturing woodland nurseries while giving space to the rejuvenating  effects of decay and decomposition? Through a first rehearsal  installation along the south edge of Butler Field and a concurrent  installation at the Chicago Cultural Center, we hope to initiate a  series of performances that could transform vacant lots throughout  the city with ritual and ecological care while simultaneously  demonstrating the social and environmental benefits of fuller and  extended urban forestry cycles. 

TREE CYCLES is made up of three primary components, with the  Woodland Circle and the ability of the installation to be replicated  and distributed throughout other areas of the city. The Woodland  Circle is a new growth circular forest installation occupying the south entry lawn of Butler Field, a living counterpoint to the Serra sculpture  at the north entry lawn. The TREE CYCLES installation activates  an underutilized space beneath the adjacent southern tree allée and  brings to life the full cycle of felling, decay, repurposing, and  decomposition with rough logs harvested from the city, nurse logs  generating new growth and nutrients, and fabricated log seating  elements that acknowledge the human dimension and application of  raw materials. The Chicago Cultural Center installation visualizes the  full cycles of growth and decay over time lapse and marries the  immediacy and materiality of a living nurse log with databases for  tracking and caring for the urban forest at large.