Text in the Garden

You may or may not have noticed this, but the anatomy table seats on Library Hill (which I posted a photo of yesterday) have a series of texts by them, telling the background of the installation. The texts are lit up and are especially visible at night. I created the above composite of all of them, as it’s a little difficult and tedious to run around and read all the lit up texts.

• To Be Set and Sown in the Garden                  Christine Borland, 2001
• Commissioned to mark the 550th Anniversary of The University of Glasgow
• The porcelain pillows are replicas of the wooden headrests used in anatomical dissection
• Each pillow is inscribed with a plant illustrated in Fuchs’ herbal ‘The History of Plants’ 1542
• The first suggestion of a physic garden in Scotland is a planting list by Mark Jameson
• Jameson was Rector’s Deputy in 1555, when Glasgow University was sited near the cathedral
• Jameson’s annotated copy, 1549, of Fuchs’ pocket herbal, is kept in the University Library
• Many of the plants selected were considered extremely dangerous if taken during pregnancy
• The reason for Mark Jameson’s selection of plants with gynaecological properties, is unclear

The eagle-eyed among you may have noticed that even though there are ten benches and thus ten pieces of text, there are only nine lines of text in the composite above. The tenth piece of text is missing, replaced by a block of wood and gravel. Anyone have any idea what the final mystery piece of text is supposed t say, or is it supposed to be blank?

[Poll #12: What is your favourite place to study for exams?]
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May 24, 2010 | Categories: Art & Sculptures, Night | Tags: 550th Anniversary, Art, Christine Borland, Composite, Fuchs, Glasgow University, Library Hill, Lit Up, Mark Jameson, Sculpture, Text, The History of Plants, To Be Set and Sown in the Garden | Leave A Comment »