Agnes Denes – “Wheatfield – A Confrontation” I
“Early in the morning on the first of May 1982 we began to plant a two-acre wheatfield in lower Manhattan, two blocks from World Trade Center, facing the Statue of Liberty.”
“Wheatfield” fala-nos de esperança e da generosidade da natureza. Fala-nos também da criação de paisagens improváveis, ou mesmo impossíveis, de inventar. E fala-nos de tempo. Tempo de vida das plantas na terra, tempo das imagens que a natureza, mesmo que artificializada, pode criar. E de como esse tempo se torna o nosso tempo e parte da nossa vida, dos nossos pensamentos, do nosso estar no mundo.
“We harvested the crop on August 16 on a hot, muggy Sunday. The air was stifling and the city stood still. All those Manhattanites who had been watching the field grow from green to golden amber and had gotten attached to it – the stockbrokers and the economists, office workers, tourists, and others attracted by the media coverage – stood around in sad silence. Some cried. TV crews were everywhere, but they too spoke little and then in a hushed voice.
We harvested almost 1000 pounds of healthy, golden wheat.”
Podia-se falar dos 200 camiões de lixo retirados do terreno. Podia-se falar dos 80 camiões de terra descarregada para fazer crescer tão singular paisagem. Podia-se falar dos 4,5 biliões de dólares que custava este pedaço de mundo. Podia-se falar do complexo de luxo que a seguir ali surgiu. Mas “Wheatfield” é muito mais que isso.
“Wheatfield affected many lives, and the ripples are extending. Some suggested that I put my wheat up on the wheat Exchange and sell it to the highest bidder, others that I apply to the government for a farmers’ subsidy to prevent me planting the next year. Reactions ranged from disbelief to astonishment, from ridicule to being moved to tears. A lot of people wrote to thank me for creating Wheatfield.”
Quando entre os arranha-céus de Manhattan surge um campo de trigo, não é demais utilizar a palavra amor.
Texto retirados de: Denes, A., 1992, “Wheatfield – A Confrontation”, Cornell University, New York.