You can create a how-to guide for anything these days, and Madelon Galland has done just that, with the help of SuperNaturale, a website dedicated to the do-it-yourself culture.
Galland started a project called STUMP in New York City. Since 1999, Galland worked hard to take NYC stumps under her wing and upholster them. According to SuperNaturale, she is currently in India, but still spreading the word on the STUMP project. She’s inviting people worldwide to join her in giving abandoned urban tree stumps a second life. Her website offers fanatasitc examples of post-upholstered work.
The Spacing Wire first caught wind of this trend back in Dec. 2005 with the group Knitta, who reimagine graffiti as warm, fuzzy, and acceptable in Texas.
Many of the trees were cut down because they were either sick or had been damaged in an accident. Once upholstered, they become a conversation piece within the city. All she asks in return is that people send her pictures of their upholstered stumps to add them to her collection.
In a piece written by Galland for SuperNaturale, she provides readers with a step-by-step guide as well as a list of what you will need, most of which you will find at home, the rest can be bought at any hobby shop for little cost. And really, what better reason could their be to reminisce into your childhood days of Gimp and summer camp arts and crafts?
2 comments
There’s a stump on the east side of University just south of College that could be turned into a throne!
This seems an inadequate response to “WHY?” are these trees dying – and as cars tend to be the killers in both direct and indirect ways, maybe we could/should do more to address that aspect vs. fluffy responses, though art can be powerful to draw attention to it all