Jennifer Steinkamp, Judy Crook 5, 2014. Video installation. Colby College Museum of Art. The Lunder Collection, 2017.801. Photograph by Jason Paige Smith.
In 2005, the artist Jennifer Steinkamp created a digitally animated tree in homage to her first-grade teacher, Miss Znerold, who had singled out Steinkamp’s “sponge trees”—made with a paint-dipped sponge—for special praise. Other dedications by the artist followed, including a series of animated trees made in honor of Judy Crook, a teacher from Steinkamp’s years in art school. As part of the presentation of one of these works in the Colby Museum’s lobby, visitors are invited to compose dedications to their favorite teachers on paper leaves. A cascade of these leaves now fills one of the lobby’s windows, and a handful of dedications appears here in celebration of Teacher Appreciation Week. Judy Crook 5 will be on view in the Colby Museum’s lobby into the summer months. Stop by to see this magical work and consider answering the question “How has a teacher positively affected, shaped, or influenced your life?”
You may find the images above and more on the Colby College Museum of Art’s Tumblr page.