FOOTPRINTS  © 2001

Footprints, 2001
Carved stone
9 units of 90 x 60 x 15 cm.
West Lake Park, Hangzhou, China

Walking is a way of measuring space and time. Footprints is a solidified gesture of walking. It is an anonymous memorial dedicated to all those people who have ever walked in West Lake, (Hangzhou, China). It is an open book that tells us the memory of this landscape. The footprints carved in the stone slabs could be anyone's footprints. The interest of this project lies in the need to evidence a human presence through the absence of footprints. Formally, Footprints consists of nine stone units from the site, in which footprints are carved into the surface. Eight of these slabs are embedded in a small ascending hill, like stairs, and lead to an upper space. In these stone slabs the footprints, left and right, are displaced in a dynamic attitude, inviting us to walk. The whole is arranged in a kind of curve, adapting to the characteristics of the environment. A path, which runs parallel to the lake, separates this group of stones from the ninth slab, which is located on the shore of the lake, marking a strategic point of view for the contemplation of a beautiful landscape. In this stone, the footprints are carved in parallel, indicating a static position of contemplation and rest.

CREDITS ::

Conceptualization: Esther Pizarro
Production: Esther Pizarro
Location: West Lake Park, Hangzhou, China

Permanent intervention created in the context of the 2nd West Lake International Sculpture Symposium, Gushan Park, West Lake, Hangzhou, China.