Projects
Arguably my best Work
Project type
Healthy Beautiful Trees, Photographs, Point Clouds
Date
2016-2024
Location
Amesbury, MA
Description:
I have pruned over 20,000 trees, mostly apple, many of them under the watchful eye of a master arboriculturist.
There are myriad comparisons to be drawn between a master artist and their apprentices, and a master arboriculturist and theirs. As I have had the opportunity to grow my artistic practice in a wide range of mediums, the process of pruning apple trees has emerged as my favorite.
When sketching or painting, the page/canvas starts blank. With trees, the artist must work in concert with the will of the plant. The medium is embedded in many environments: conceptual, social, physical, biological, and the artist must take each into account. The limbs must be robust enough to support the weight of those who might climb them. The foliage must be broad enough beneath the sun to provide energy for a hearty yield.
And the tree MUST be beautiful.
Apple orchards are public art.
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Some of my favorite trees
These mature gala trees produce many of the apples for the farms sweet cider. This row was pruned almost last, and was frequently a muddied mire in the springtime.
The men in the fields
During a partial eclipse - Behind the solar panels are where the trees in the point cloud are located.
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These men, among some others from their town in the far north of Romania, are responsible for my going back to school to study organizational culture.
Their spirit and character made me aspire to contribute to humankind in more ways than farming.
Best of Northshore Editors Choice Best Doughnut 2x award recipient(s)... The trees won too
Behind me is the famed "Cider Hill". During winter when it is pruned, the chilled wind howls up the face and tries to knock anyone who dares climb the ice covered trees off. But this is when great trees are made.
A young woman in a Northern Spy tree
Photography - Daniel Keating Jr.
Model - April Bilodeau
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The trees are pruned to be fun on purpose ; )
Some of the trees I've pruned
Looking down the hill, the artist stands with his subjects.
A Winter Banana -
The worst apple on the farm by a country mile.
This is a sad old Winter Banana apple tree. It sits in a low lying part of the farm with poor drainage and its roots have suffered.
There are only two of these trees on the entire ~10,000 tree farm. That's because the apples it produces are intolerable, hahahaha. All you can do is laugh and keep it well supported while it lives out its remaining years.
A Winter Banana Close
Point Cloud Scan - Daniel Keating Jr.
I appreciate this tree, despite its misfortune.
A Winter Banana Inside
Point Cloud Scan - Daniel Keating Jr.
I appreciate its resilience.
A Small Gala Tree
Point Cloud Scan -
Daniel Keating Jr.
This gala tree is the Winter Banana's neighbor and is also located on the periphery of the low lying clay basin which produces such wonderful strawberries.
These two friends stick it out every winter and I've tried to keep them both from blowing over.
Inside the Gala
Point Cloud Scan -
Daniel Keating Jr.
These branches are so heavily bowed by the weight of their own fruit. I think there's something beautiful about that.
The Models
These interactive models pay homage to some of my friends who I care deeply for.
Click the play button on the model to activate it.​
Winter Banana
Gala
Fashion Portfolio
These photos are from my professional fashion portfolio 2009-2016
On my Mind
Photography - Brian Jamie
Blue
Photography - Danny Kim
Shoes on the Bed
Photography - Melissa Mahoney
Headshot
Photography - Danny Kim
Expecting Company
Photography - Marco Ovando
Isenberg School of Management Credo
In my role as the unofficial executive director of the Isenberg School of Management's Undergraduate Student Advisory Council, I had the pleasure of working to create what would lay the foundation for the school's first ever Credo. This took the form of a pledge to be used in induction ceremonies.
While the benchmarking done to inform the production of the credo was done collaboratively in a single session, I was fully independent in writing the credo and it's explanation, and in creating the presentation.
As a student of organizational culture, I know the value of an artifact and a well articulated set of espoused values. As a poet and artist, I relish any opportunity to imbue large groups of impressionable citizens with pro-social values.
