Susan A. Faulkman
Essence: The Seed, The Flower, The Fruit
2004
Carved Indiana limestone
Commission, Wisconsin Arts Board Percent for Art Program
Integrated into the winding paths of the Botanical Garden, Susan A. Falkman’s sculpture Essence: Seed, Flower, Fruit depicts three fundamental stages of life. Drawing inspiration from the garden setting, Falkman illustrates the life cycle from blooming to regeneration. Seed tenderly curls down into delicately rendered leaves. Flower is a blossom at full maturity. Fruit is a large half-eaten apple. Deep bites expose where the apples seeds would be, suggesting the end of this fruit and the beginning of a new life cycle. The bitten apple, amplified at human scale, asks viewers to acknowledge their role in the broader ecosystem.
Susan A. Falkman is a Wisconsin-based sculptor whose work is often evocative of nature. Using hard limestone, granite and marble she creates delicate, undulating forms with expressive texture. Falkman began carving in Naxos, Greece and trained in Carrara, Italy, a city known for its rich marble quarries. She works in different scales from large public installations to more intimately sized carvings. Her stone sculptures can be found in France, Italy, Australia, and throughout the United States.
Location
Essence: Seed, Flower, Fruit is located south of Birge Hall in the Botany Garden (1090 University Avenue).
Bibliography
UW-Madison Botany Garden webpage on “Essence: Seed, Flower, Fruit.”
