Mark Brest van Kempen

Mark Brest van Kempen

Marsh Zone

A dumpster full of remnants of the Farfield, CA marshes and various designating parking signs

Large size rolling trash dumpster

2000

Bio - Mark Brest van Kempen creates a variety of artworks in landscape using it as the sculptural material. Some of his works include the Free Speech Monument on the UC Berkeley campus and the Land Exchange at the National Academy of Art in China.

Artist Statement - ”This mobile, temporary project makes visible the tension between space for nature versus space for humans. Several parking spaces around the City of Fairfield, which was built on marshland, are reserved for a small patch of marsh that travels around the city in a debris box. Official city signs designate this valuable parking space for Cattails, Tule reeds and other native wetland plants only. The piece is a visual reminder of where Fairfield has been built but also engages people in a dialogue about the value of a native ecosystem in the context of building and running a city.” -Mark Brest van Kempen

Background - Mark Brest van Kempen wanted to show the struggle of humanity and nature through this artwork. He created this storage bin of the marsh as a harsh reminder to the people that the city was once a marsh land and they have in a way thrown it all away. Further, he creates the reserved parking signs to say that this land is the marsh’s land.

Marsh zone fits the theme that nature is always changing, but in this piece it shows the uneven balance between humanity and nature. It is a constant reminder that we are changing our environment and losing the beauty that it once gave off.