I have been going to my studio every Monday/Wednesday/Friday (for the most part) since September when we bought a second car. Thank goodness the road to Red Cliff is a major thoroughfare, because it is a windy mountain road and I’d be frightened to death if it weren’t plowed. It has been snowing a lot lately, and I got my lesson in parking today (I got stuck getting out and had to shovel the snow out from under my front tires). 

But that is neither here nor there. I spent today working on a model for The Wish. The drawing above was created almost two years ago when I decided to make my vision of this project a reality. It came in handy when I had a meeting with the powers-that-be at Anythink Huron Street, a library in Thornton, Colorado that has commissioned The Wish as a permanent installation in the library.

This isn’t just any library. Anythink Huron Street is located in Adams County, which was the poorest library system in the state for 40 years. In 2006, the community voted to increase funding and they now have 7 thriving libraries where people can come to dream and create. Watch this inspirational TedX Mile High talk by the director of Anythink Libraries Pam Sandlian Smith (one of the women I’m working with) and listen to her comments about the role of libraries in the 21st century. 

I love that she talks about how libraries are adapting to meet community needs and how she describes them as the cornerstones of democracy. I’m delighted to be working with this library.

I learned early on when writing a grant proposal to produce my film Water Paper Time, that having visual reference material can be really helpful. Imagine the panelists reading my proposal stating that I was going to make a film showing paper drying. Needless to say, I did not get funding the first time around, but the second time I submitted an animated video showing the paper drying and was awarded a grant. 

I think that the drawing and the web page that I put together helped the librarians better understand The Wish project. 

I’m at the point now where I will show the library this model, along with the parts & pieces of the 6-1/2′ diameter dandelion that will be installed in the space in late April/early May. We’ll discuss things like how high to hang the dandelion (I’m pretty sure it will hang up above peoples heads, because this is a public space that gets used, not to mention the fact that helping oneself to a dandelion seed could be tempting). 

As part of the project, I’ll do a workshop with members of the community and they will help me make some of the 300 paper seeds. They will also contribute wishes, which will hopefully become a sound component of the project.

What is your wish? You too can participate in the project. I’m collecting wishes from around the world on my website and hope that you have either contributed one already or that you’ll click here to leave your wish. Many thanks!