'Kali'

A sculpture by Bruce Johnson in the Luther Burbank Center for the Arts sculpture garden next to the Farmers' Market. The garden is lighted at night, always open and free. When the sculpture garden opened in 2014 on a strip of land between the Luther Burbank Center and Sutter Regional Hospital, it consisted of 16 giant redwood pieces by Johnson. For three days in October 2017, the Tubbs fire came over the hill from Calistoga and headed straight for the wood sculptures. For two days, the flames and embers slowly burned through many of the sculptures, melted lights and irrigation system and charred the landscape into a total loss.

The garden was still smoldering when the evacuation was lifted and sculptor Johnson came to assess the damage, Of 16 pieces, six were burned to the ground, three were burned from within and badly charred, and seven survived. He hauled it all to his studio on the Sonoma coast and started rebuilding. The result was this piece called 'Kali' for the Hindu goddess of destruction and renewal. it's built of cypress logs sheathed in flame-resistant copper.

It caught my eye this morning when we went to the Farmers' Market in the Luther Burbank Center's parking lot. We must have parked in a different spot today because the sculpture is huge and hard to miss. We often walk through the sculpture garden  yet I had never noticed it. I like it and find the story behind it particularly compelling. 

It was too hot to do more than prune a few branches from the bottom of the olive tree I noticed while I was sitting outside throwing Spike's Kong for him.  Inside, I made a spinach, cabbage, red onion and walnut salad with microgreens ,all from the market. We will have it along with some fresh corn on the cob. I do get inspired by all the market bounty. We're moving into tomato season and I'll make a caprese salad with heirloom tomatoes tomorrow.

I put the binding on the second heart quilt and did a twenty minute Peloton cycle with Sam Yo, he of the lovely smile, the buff biceps and the Superman tattoo. He was also once a Buddhist monk and had only seven possessions. He makes the time on the bike go quickly....