Seed Sphinx

Seed Sphinx is an ephemeral rammed earth sculpture, packed with seeds, created for the Burgoyne Bay Community Garden on Salt Spring Island. This project is shaped by research and practice with seed bombs, rammed earth, ephemeral sculpture and the use of sentinals (gargoyles and other mythic creatures) for adornment, utility and symbolic protection.

All soil layers for Seed Sphinx were locally sourced within a kilometer of the garden. Soil, compost, manure, clay, sand, crushed eggshells, and bird and pollinator feeding flower seeds—were pressed into a sphinx-ish form which bloomed for three months. As the flowers and volunteer plants grew  out of the Sphinx, the structure became less visible, transformed into a blooming earth creature.

In the Fall, seeds will be collected from the blooms, with the rest of the soil returning to the earth as part of the garden bed where it lies. I think of this work as a regenerative sculpture and living installation. An experiment in how ephemeral and seasonal art practices can engage with ecological communities.

This project was supported by a Catalyst Grant from Salt Spring Arts and the Wilding Foundation. I’m deeply grateful both the Foundation and to the gardeners and broader community at Bourgoyne Valley for welcoming this little experiment into the landscape. Designs for future outdoor sculptures are in process due to requests for the Sphinx’ return.