Carol Hummel's Tree Cozy.

As part of the Sculpture in the Heights in Ohio, Carol Hummel crocheted a cozy for this tree in front of the Cleveland Heights City Hall. The "tree sweater" was made from brightly colored nylon and synthetic material that will survive the weather:

On the most obvious level, it is a piece of clothing, personifying the tree and keeping it cozy and colorful throughout the year, enhancing the beauty of nature as well as the landscape of Northern Ohio.

On another level, the brightly colored crocheted cozy wraps the tree in personal and cultural nostalgia evoking memories of bygone times and places when life was good.

On yet another level, the cozy softens the strong tree form while also emphasizing it. It is meant to simultaneously caress and encase the tree. The cozy covering the tree fluctuates between comforting blanket and suffocating cover-up; it conceals as much as it protects; it hides as much as it reveals.

This reminds me of Erika Barcott's tree sweater, as previously posted on Neatorama, just on a much, much grander scale!

Link [Flickr] - Thanks Robyn!