Soon, a piece of vacant land will become a place for people to recharge their spirits.

This field across the street from The Resource Center’s Michael J. Raymond Center on Jones & Gifford Avenue is beginning to take shape as a labyrinth garden.

In a unique collaboration, artists with disabilities from The Resource Center and Aspire of Western New York are creating a labyrinth garden. The finished product will be located in a field adjacent to the parking lot across the street from TRC’s Michael J. Raymond Center on Jones & Gifford Avenue in Jamestown. TRC is leasing the land from the City of Jamestown for a nominal fee in order to connect the labyrinth with the city’s planned Riverwalk extension.

The project is being spearheaded by individuals with cognitive disabilities and their support staff at The Resource Center. TRC operates several Day Programs, and each one is contributing something to the labyrinth, based on the physical abilities of the individuals in the program: from constructing birdhouse and making wind chimes, to planting flowers and creating labyrinth’s centerpiece.

A labyrinth is laid out somewhat like a maze, guiding people along winding pathways toward a central point. In this case, that central point will feature a centerpiece sculpture, to be called “Serpentine Field,” and consist of individually created tiles and other media.

Stacy Langheinrich, an artist from The Resource Center, uses flags to mark the labyrinth’s pathways.

The sculpture will have a low, winding wall. A 6-foot-wide path will be placed around the sculpture so that individuals who use wheelchairs may access the sculpture. Since it is a labyrinth garden, plants and flowers will be planted along the labyrinth’s pathways.

Artists with disabilities from TRC and Aspire are working together to create the centerpiece. Kristen Briggs and Sara Baker Michalak, art teachers for TRC and Aspire, respectively, are overseeing the work.

Inspiration for the sculpture and its various components arose from the natural features of the Chadakoin River area where the sculpture and labyrinth are located: grasses, flowers and leaves; footprints of animals; insects; fossils; and the many textures of stones, bark and other elements present at the site. The labyrinth offers an experience reminiscent of the sights, sounds, textures, and aromas of the area’s water, field, trees, and weather, and all that is to be discovered there. The sculpture offers opportunities, too, to contemplate the relationships among places, people, our constructed environments, and the natural world.

Because the labyrinth garden will be located close to the Chadakoin River and will tie into the planned extension of the city’s Riverwalk project, labyrinth organizers decided to name the project the Riverwalk Community Labyrinth. For centuries, people have enjoyed labyrinths as places of self-discovery and personal reflection. It is anticipated that thousands of people, area residents and tourists alike, will come to the Labyrinth Garden to meditate, seek spiritual renewal and simply enjoy this piece of community art.

TRC and Aspire support individuals with developmental disabilities to lead full, productive lives as integrated members of the community. People with disabilities from the two agencies, their art teachers and other staff have been doing all the work required to create the labyrinth garden – laying out the pathways for the labyrinth, mowing the field, planting flowers, digging the hole for the sculpture, and making tiles for the centerpiece. The project is expected to be completed in September.

Representatives from The Resource Center and Aspire are excited about the project, both in terms of the involvement of people with disabling conditions and the opportunity for the community to become engaged.

Henry Wesley, left, and Harry Lavoice create clay tiles for the labyrinth’s centerpiece structure in their iXpress art class at Aspire.

“This project gives our participants an opportunity to give back to the community, showing their commitment and abilities to create this multi-cultural area for all to enjoy,” said Johnny Tooley, Special Projects Coordinator for TRC’s Day Habilitation Programs. “Our participants are extremely proud of what they have accomplished so far and take a lot of pride in making this project come to fruition. Each site is contributing something, whether it be birdfeeders to birdhouses to wind chimes, planting flowers, all depending on their physical capabilities. Those capable helped lay out the actual labyrinth. They have contacted the Audubon Society as well as the Roger Tory Peterson Institute to find out what birds are native to this area so they could create the proper houses or feeders.”

“The process of creating the labyrinth and centerpiece sculpture is providing opportunities for our agencies’ individuals to explore fresh directions for artistic expression and expand their skills,” said Ms. Michalak. “We’re excited about the possibilities a project like this suggests for all kinds of arts experiences in community.”

A labyrinth is a path that invites us into a designed space, leads us to the center, and then back out. Labyrinths represent “wholeness” and can be of different shapes and sizes. A labyrinth may look like a maze, but unlike a maze, a labyrinth has no dead-ends and one can’t get lost. There is just one meandering but purposeful path to follow.

People use labyrinths for many reasons. For some, the experience provides an opportunity for relaxation, recreation and fun; for others, contemplation and reflection. The Riverwalk Community Labyrinth offers all these things, and this too: located in a natural area next to the Chadakoin River, the environment is rich with a panorama of wildflowers and grasses, the sounds of birds and the river, and a variety of animals that frequent the wetland area.

The project is being partially funded through a $1,000 grant from the New York State Council on the Arts, administered through the Cattaraugus County Arts Council. TRC Foundation also contributed $1,000 to the project. Because this is a community project, The Resource Center seeking community support for the labyrinth. Donations of money, benches, plants, flowers and gardening tools are needed. An additional goal is to add sculptures to the area surrounding the labyrinth, and any artists interested in donating a sculpture to the project is asked to contact TRC.

Amy Pring, an artist from Aspire, works on a clay tile for the centerpiece.

To help promote the Riverwalk Community Labyrinth and to raise money for the project, a chicken barbecue will be held at the project site Thursday, August 27. The cost is $8, which includes a half of a chicken, two side orders and a roll. The event, catered by All-American Barbecue, starts at 11:00 a.m. and continues until everything is sold out. Even if you’re not able to stay and eat, area residents can come down to get a look at the progress on the labyrinth.

For more information, phone 483-2344.

COMMENT

The Riverwalk Community Labyrinth is a marvelous example of two organizations working together on a project that everyone can enjoy. Click here to make a donation to support the labyrinth.