“Holy bat cave, Batman!” Robin of Batman and Robin fame might say this if he entered the trellis at Christopher Columbus Park these October days.
Another Robin, Robyn Reed, Park Art Curator for the Friends of Christopher Columbus Park, has created a whimsical art installation at the Park. When walking under the trellis, look up to see a colony of bats at rest and clouds of flying bats.
While the presence of these bats evokes a creepy Halloween vibe, bats are in fact crucial to the environment. If you go camping in the wilds, you will be happy to know that micro-bats keep the mosquito population in check. Next time you eat a banana, mango, or avocado, think about the fact that bats pollinate these fruits. Fruit eating bats in rain forest areas disperse seeds that help with reforestation. All that aside, as you walk under the trellis, just remember to look up and enjoy the Park’s camp of pseudobats.
Over these last few years the trellis has become Robyn’s canvas. She uses the physical structure of the trellis to frame her creations. In 2017 she used Changing Course, a school of 2,000 plastic bottle fish to bring attention to the overwhelming amount of plastic trash in the oceans and waterways all over the world.
For the last three frigid Februarys, gigantic candy hearts, a major Instagram hit, have elicited smiles and warm, loving feelings to all who wandered through. The current bat project is a playful example of Robyn’s wide-ranging creativity.
Learn more about the Friends of Christopher Columbus Park at foccp.org. Please consider making a donation, becoming a member (foccp.org/membership) or a sponsor (foccp.org/corporate-sponsorship). Thank you and enjoy your Park!
