New Life for a Dying Tree
This elm tree stood on the grounds of the Law Quad, east of Hutchins Hall and south of the Legal Research Building. Photo by Gregory Fox Photography.
New Life for a Dying Tree
When the tree was removed to make way for construction, workers discovered it was infested with carpenter ants.
New Life for a Dying Tree
The kiln-dried wood from the tree was given to area wood turners, including Greg Smith of Troy, Michigan, who created works of art that would be sold at the University of Michigan Museum of Art.
New Life for a Dying Tree
Greg Smith created an ornament with these pieces, with a block M at the center of the hollowed-out sphere and finials on each end.
New Life for a Dying Tree
The completed ornament sits on a shelf that also was made from the Law Quad elm tree, by Peter Czuk.
New Life for a Dying Tree
Other pieces made from the elm tree include a small box with a Petoskey stone inset in the lid, by Robert Roehrig. Photo by U-M Photo Services, Scott Galvin.
| NEW LIFE FOR A DYING TREE When an elm tree had to be removed to make room for the Robert B. Aikens Commons—and, ultimately, because of an ant infestation—it became part of an innovative recycling project at U-M. The wood was dried and given to wood turners, who created vases, tables, pepper grinders, and other objects from it, giving new life to a dying tree. Visit the UMMA Museum store, www.umma.umich.edu/visiting/shop.html. Photos by Leisa Thompson Photography, unless otherwise noted. |
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