Chicago Illinois The Leaf Lounge is a spatial-material installation which claims from the urban realm a small slice of space which becomes an outdoor lounge for the duration of the Biennial to which visitors can retreat for relaxation and social engagement. Made of ordinary materials and employing an economy of means, the leaf lounge adds another spatial layer to the building and blurs the distinction between building and city.
The lounge space is bordered on two sides by a six foot-high, L-shaped wall comprised of welded wire baskets filled with leaves fallen from trees, and on a the other sides by the existing building and stair. The gridded wire structure of the baskets will recede visually as leaves are added to it throughout the three month duration of the Biennial until the wall is completely filled, reintroducing nature to the city in an abstract yet sensuous manner.