Nature-themed metal sculpture is a mesh of the ecosystem
Those passing by the Windsor Town Green Community Garden may have noticed a new fixture in the garden, an 8-by-6 foot eco-themed metal sculpture. The sculpture’s highest point is a metal sunflower, with many branches and a menagerie of flowers, insects, animals, leaves, roots and more. The work of art includes pieces that move, and even a little sphere-shaped metal creation that the club hopes to put live succulents into.
Metal artist James Selby, who owns the James Selby Scrap Metal Design studio, gifted the club a day in his Santa Rosa workshop to collaborate on the piece. Three Windsor Garden Club members, Suzette Ward, Stephen Backman and Kathy Matonak, designed the sculpture and picked out the materials and Selby did the welding. The sculpture was installed on Nov. 8.
The sculpture is made entirely out of reclaimed metal, including birds made out of wrenches and a caterpillar made out a bicycle chain.
The piece of metal art features what Backman described as an “Espalier type of effect,” meaning that the sculpture can be viewed from 360 degrees, at all angles.
“To me, it’s an espalier, which I think is a beautiful form of tree, and it merges things together. It incorporates a lot of different pieces we find in nature and the garden. We want to bring smiles to peoples’ faces when they look at it and see the fun and whimsical things that are on it,” Ward said.
Backman said that the sculpture “represents everything the garden is about-insects, plants, life in general, the ecosystem, evolution.”
Selby said that when the three garden club members who designed the sculpture came to him, they told him they wanted a tree that had life, and would be changing throughout the years, adding and taking off parts throughout to represent different seasons.
“I thought that was a beautiful way to describe it,” Selby said.
Windsor Garden Club President Cindy Fenton said that when Thomas Eddy designed the garden, there were spots for art on the original plans.
“Art was always something that we intended to put in the garden, based on his initial design,” Fenton said.
Fenton said the garden club knew Selby through other sculptures he had made around town, so a garden club member asked him to donate his workshop and materials for a day. Selby jumped at the chance. The three club members and Selby spent 11 hours in his studio creating the sculpture.
“They came prepared and they came to work, and they worked hard,” Selby said about the garden club members.
Selby said the reason behind his generosity is his dedication to the town. Selby raised two children in Windsor, and retired here with his wife.
“I’ve been a resident of Windsor 34 years and I love Windsor. I’m very much a part of Windsor, and I donate to different causes,” Selby said.
Selby offers classes in his shop to anyone interested. People can bring their own metal or pick and choose from his collection. He can be reached at 484-1598 or
js****@so***.net
. More information on his shop and a gallery of his sculptures can be found at www.selbydesign.com.
More information on the Windsor Community Garden and the nonprofit Windsor Garden Club can be found at www.windsorgardenclub.org.
