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| Andy Goldworthy’s Spire | In 2008 the FOR-SITE Foundation, in partnership with the Presidio Trust, commissioned the Spire, a site-specific installation by artist Andy Goldsworthy. The Spire is made from the trunks of thirty-seven cypress trees felled as part of the Presidio’s reforestation effort. From its fifteen-foot diameter, it rises over ninety feet into the air. The height of the Presidio spire and its placement presented its own set of unique administrative and engineering challenges. Architects, structural engineers, and preservationists were all brought into the process. To ensure stability, the keystone tree was lifted by a 350-ton crane, anchored into a metal sleeve within a 12-foot deep hole, and surrounded by poured concrete. New trees, some of them already planted near the spire, will eventually grow up around the sculpture. At some future point in time, the Spire itself will succumb to decay. During its life span, the sculpture will be a monumental reminder of the history of this forest and by extension the history of the Presidio. The Spire is located on the Bay Area Ridge Trail near the Arguello Gate, west of Inspiration Point Overlook and north of the Presidio Golf Course Clubhouse.
A temporary exhibition, Goldsworthy at the Presidio, afforded visitors further insights into Andy Goldsworthy’s art and the making of the Presidio’s spire. Preparatory drawings, color photographs, and an 11-foot model of the Presidio spire provided an informative context for this sculpture. Text and installation photographs, and a short program of film and video clips, provided background on Goldsworthy, site-based art, and the Presidio Trust’s reforestation efforts.The exhibition was on view from November 2008 through July 2009 at Building 49 in the Presidio. About the Artist Press |
| Presidio Habitats | The first site-based art exhibition conceived for a national park Now open to the public
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| Andy Goldworthy's Wood Line |
Building on the broad public interest generated by the FOR-SITE Foundation's first initiative in the Presidio—Andy Goldsworthy's Spire from 2008, and its accompanying exhibition, Goldsworthy at the Presidio—the FOR-SITE Foundation has proposed a further site-specific commission by Andy Goldsworthy, titled Wood Line. The Presidio Trust is currently reviewing and soliciting public comment on this proposal. Wood Line is conceived as a celebration of the Presidio’s historic forest. Wood generated by construction and reforestation projects in the park will be positioned to form a sinuous "path" through the forest between Presidio Boulevard and Lovers' Lane. The artist has described the movement of the piece through the landscape as "drawing the place." As with many of Goldsworthy's site-specific works, the materials would decompose and return to the earth over time. |
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