Through the Eye of the Unicorn
Giovanni Aloi & Jenny Kendler—Chicago, IL
Medium: Gravel and soil mound with plant species native to Bell Bowl Prairie, cedar fence, recycled polyester “silk” flags with silk-screened pigment, upcycled poles, and hardware
Location: Eastside lawn of Dwarf Conifer Garden
Artist statement: Bell Bowl Prairie, an irreplaceable 8,000-year-old ecosystem, was substantially destroyed in the recent expansion of the Rockford Airport. In response, Giovanni Aloi and Jenny Kendler’s Through the Eye of the Unicorn—an installation inspired by the well-known Renaissance Unicorn Tapestries—encourages us to rethread our connections with nature. More than just memorializing, it urges us to engage in ecological preservation—from “freeing” grasslands in our own yards to restoring prairies statewide.
Collaborating Scientists:
Highlighted Plants:
Allium cernuum
Amorpha canescens
Anemone cylindrica
Anemone patens
Antennaria neglecta
Asclepias tuberosa
Asclepias verticillata
Bouteloua curtipendula
Ceanothus americanus
Coreopsis palmata
Dalea candida
Dalea purpurea
Dodecatheon meadia
Echinacea pallida
Eryngium yuccifolium
Galium boreale
Gentiana alba
Gentiana andrewsii
Geum triflorum
Helianthus occidentalis
Heliopsis helianthoides
Heuchera richardsonii
Koeleria macrantha
Lespedeza capitata
Liatris aspera
Monarda fistulosa
Opuntia humifusa
Oxalis violacea
Parthenium integrifolium
Phlox pilosa
Rudbeckia hirta
Ruellia humilis
Schizachyrium scoparium
Silene regia
Sisyrinchium campestre
Solidago speciosa
Symph (Aster) ericoides
Symph (Aster) laeve
Symph (Aster) oblongifolium
Symphyotrichum sericeum
Tradescantia ohiensis
Viola pedatifida
Viola sororia
