Growth, Search, Escape

Everett Public Library, Evergreen Branch 2019

City of Everett, Washington State Arts Commission

Photography by Stephen Funk

Growth, Search, Escape

I am interested in how people, from childhood to adult, are constantly in pursuit of something. I chose three thought-provoking quests of humankind: Growth, Search, Escape, and symbolically represented each of these journeys in the clerestory bays that run the spine of the library.

The first bay embodies Growth through hand-woven branches, which at first glance are chaotically placed. As one walks further into the library, the branches begin to have some semblance of organization. As a child grows, they are messy beings developing and striving toward an ordered existence. A glowing green house hangs lingering; it is always there for protection, help and solace. This bay is adjacent to the children’s stacks.

The second clerestory bay represents Search. Abstracted pools of water made from ½” mild steel, hang in the air and act as reflecting pools as we search within ourselves and beyond. A brightly lit red sphere, globe or perhaps a symbol of the World Wide Web hangs within, reminding us that information to our search is at our fingertips. The computers of the library are near this bay.

A multitude of stepping-stones made of fabricated sheet metal hang in the third clerestory bay signifying Escape. The stones lead to a blue lighted doorway inviting one to take the chance. The path of stones is challenging but with the right amount of courage and determination, one can enter a new world. The adult reading stacks are next to this bay.  

As branches float throughout all three spaces, they remind us that growth is always within us. “Growth, Search, Escape” are three stages in life that we as children through adulthood experience and desire to understand. A library is the perfect place to start and continue any kind of investigation.