Treetones Tour

To bring awareness and to honor the diversity of trees on Governors Island, Treetones Tour, a site-specific installation, highlighted twelve species of trees with hand-sewn orange sashes tied around each tree trunk.

Visitors followed a self-directed tour map and identifed each tree by the distinctive bark rubbing sewn into the sash. With the aim of engaging visitors of all ages, cards with the name of the tree, a bark rubbing, and a description of the bark “tone” were available in the pockets of each wrap for collection.

Highlighted species, chosen for their age, location, and variation of bark, included Pin Oak, Red Oak, London Plane, Ginkgo, Willow, American Elm, Siberian Elm, Tuliptree, English Elm, Norway Maple, Honey Locust, and Horse Chestnut.

The Treetones Tour Map (PDF) was available on the Governors Island Ferry, in the National Park Service offices, and in the LMCC gallery.

Conceived and executed during a Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC) Residency on the island, this project was made possible by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Trust for For Governors Island, and the National Park Service. govisland.com