Steve Tobin wanted to bring to light the unseen with his sculpture Trinity Root

For the past several months, artist Steve Tobin and his team of assistants have been working on a bronze casting inspired by the remaining stump and root of the 70-year-old sycamore tree that shielded St. Paul's Chapel against falling debris during the collapse of the twin towers.

Recently, the finished three-ton sculpture, known as Trinity Root, was hoisted by a crane into the courtyard of Trinity Church, the Episcopal parish that operates St. Paul's. On Sunday, September 11, a procession took place from St. Paul's to Trinity Church for the dedication of the sculpture. Visitors were able to walk through the sprawling root branches, which are 20 feet long, 15 feet wide, and 12.5 feet tall. 

"It's an interactive sculpture that allows people from whatever spiritual tradition they might have to interact with it," says Rev. Dr. James Cooper, rector of Trinity Church/St. Paul's Chapel.

While the sculpture was not intended as a memorial, Cooper adds, "It certainly is a memorial in the sense of that its roots are in the 9/11 experience. At the same time, it's looking to the future in hopes of peace and reconciliation and eternal life for all."

In the days after 9/11, Tobin saw a report about the sycamore on CNN, and it gave him the inspiration for the project. He is known for his root sculptures, which are cast in bronze and finished with a wood-like patina. The project also appealed to him because he enjoys working with natural forms in sites that are connected to historic events. In 2007, his nature-inspired sculptures will be the first-ever art installation at Stonehenge Monument in England.

"Another thing that I am trying to do with my sculpture [Trinity Root] is bring to light the unseen," Tobin says. "We look at, for example, trees, but we don't think about the part that is not visually apparent. This sculpture is about the power of the unseen and the strength beneath the surface. It's really not about a tree. When you look at this piece and look away, I would hope that people think about things that are not visually apparent."

The artist, Steve Tobin, inside his work

"The stump at the top [of the sculpture] is exactly as it was. It was modeled after the tree that saved the church," says Tobin, who financed the entire project, which is estimated to cost $330,000. "But about 95 percent is my own fabrication and composition. And there are different elements that are meant to suggest and evoke different things that I am interested in. For example, the legs are very animated as if they are figures running around. It's very much about life."

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