These boards were probably first generation cut timber used to make early American barns in the hill country around Highlands. Printed, “Sculpture Resident Artist Announced at The Bascom in Highlands”, NC, Carolina Arts, April 2016, p28 Press Release on John K Melvin’s Bascom Residency and sculpture.

In Will’s Instagram picture below, that’s me in the black t-shirt flanked by the staff at The Bascom when we went to talk to our material sponsor, Antique Reclaimed Lumber. Will and I have had lots of conversations in the past about ‘cradle to cradle’ and I had an idea.

In 2015 I applied to a residency program at The Bascom Center for the Arts, and then got invited by the Director for Education Will Barclift to come for a site visit. What will happen to the life of the designed object? This is about an artist residency at The Bascom. In simpler terms, Cradle 2 Cradle is a design philosophy where the designer thinks about the end in the beginning. A picture perfect example of Cradle 2 Cradle methodology. I could use 100 year barnwood, make a sculpture for a two year exhibition on the front lawn of the Bascom, and at the end, Antique Reclaimed Lumber would come, dismantle and recycle the wood into flooring. For this project, our material sponsor, Antique Reclaimed Lumber, made us a deal we couldn’t refuse.

Bascom highlands