Michael Belmore Carved Erratics, Public Art Installation at Woodsy Park

Concord Park Place's Woodsy Park to Feature Public Art by Sculptor Michael Belmore

Craig White for Urban Toronto

(excerpt of article)

The eight acre space designed by DTAH has been christened 'Woodsy Park' by the City, and it was originally supposed to open in the Fall of 2019, but construction of it is ahead of schedule. Designed by DTAH and paid for entirely by Concord Adex, the park will have a variety of programming and a significant public art component. The works were selected through an international, invitational competition, and were juried by a combination of artists, art experts, local representatives, and Concord. This resulted the awarding of several public art commissions and a fabrication process overseen by Public Art Management Ltd.

Above, two rows of sculpted stone erratics can be found in the park, the one above along the edge of the playground.

By renowned Ottawa-based and internationally shown artist Michael Belmore, the erratics were found and carved onsite by Belmore and an assistant through all types of weather. Park constructor UCC were also an essential part of the process.

Belmore's artist's statement reads "Stone was once liquid, once fire, once lucid from the confines of its solid state; they ebbed and flowed like water beneath the islands from which we build our lives. The work consists of boulders found on the property of the park. These boulders are travelled stone, they are from away, they have been picked up by ancient glacial forces and moved to the area where we now find them. In embellishing the stone, I am endeavouring to speak of how they have been worn and rounded by water, rolled under ice, and even how they descended through the retreating ice to find themselves where they are now. Ebb and Flow is a honouring of their journey."