The public art project Spring is Sprung, the Grass is Riz (I Wonder Where the Birdie is?) was a collaboration with Karen Klassen and was commissioned by the Edmonton Arts Council.

The artwork is integrated into an undulating concrete bench, and is playfully reminiscent of a vibrant spring garden. Vivacious coloured flora and a variety of greens create a pageant of liveliness within the mosaic. The interactive component of searching and finding the hidden birds creates an engaging experience for viewers of all ages.

The bench is located at Dermott District Park, on 90th Avenue and 83rd Street, Edmonton.

We worked with the fabricator of the bench to create an inset for the mosaic, then made a template of that shape for our mosaic fabrication. It was quite an involved process, requiring many visits to the Lafarge casting workshop. We created the mosaic in section in the studio, then installed the sections on site. Due to the undulation and the inset’s finite space, we left our seams to be finished on-site, adjusting in real time as we installed.

This concept was inspired by this sweet and humorous (anonymous) poe that Erin’s late bird-watching father used to recite every spring: