Gift in honor of Dr. Lawrence J. Wheeler, director of the North Carolina Museum of Art (1994–present) from Julian T. Baker Jr., Rhoda L. and Roger M. Berkowitz, Dr. Thomas D. Brammer and Mr. Robert S. Watson, Angeline J. Bryant, Blake Byrne, Marion Johnson Church, Paul Edward Coggins, Dr. W. Kent Davis, Joyce Fitzpatrick and Jay Stewart, Dr. Carlos Garcia-Velez, Marty Hayes and Michael Cucchiara, Mr. and Mrs. Vaughn Hayes, Eric and Tara Hirshberg, Ian Huckabee, Bill G. Johnson, Thomas S. Kenan III, Suzanne R. McKinney, R. Glen Medders, Dr. Cynthia S. Payne, Melissa Peden and Robert Irwin, Susan L. Petry, Michael Rubel and Kristin Rey, Kimerly Rorschach, Jeffrey Williams and Patrick Sears, Allen G. Thomas Jr., Caroline Hickman Vaughan, Robert A. Sandefur and Robert P. Venuti, Drs. Zannie and Glenn Voss, Caroline and Richard Wright, and James Walker Crow; Technology funded with generous support from IBM Corporation.
Jennifer Steinkamp created Mike Kelley using 3D animation software. The video installation shows a single tree that changes with the seasons in a continuous loop. Every two minutes the tree shifts from having green spring leaves to bright summer blossoms, then to fall colors, and finally to bare winter branches. Throughout this repeating cycle, the tree’s branches move in a slow, graceful dance. They sway and twist as if they are alive. The movement feels calm and planned, almost like a performance.
According to the artist, this installation was partially inspired by her childhood memory of the talking apple trees in The Wizard of Oz. Steinkamp named this piece in honor of her former teacher, Mike Kelley, who was also an artist. She says she sees her animated trees as portraits. Through them she tells stories about memory, nature, and people who have shaped her life.
The computer can make things beyond your imagination … I have always made things. I became an artist because I was always intrigued by making. It gives me a lot of pleasure and inspiration. I hope to pass this feeling on.
Jennifer Steinkamp
Steinkamp is known for her large-scale video projections of natural forms, especially lifelike trees that move and change. Her art focuses on motion and time, often showing slow, repeated changes like seasons or growth. She is based in Los Angeles, where she has built her career as a digital and installation artist.
tags: weather, science, change, cycle, environment, time, nature
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