 rom floor to ceiling, the new Exhibition Hall at the Alliant
Energy center radiates with elegance and beauty: the long interior with light pouring in from the wall of windows and skylights, the engaging architecture connecting inside and outside environments, the innovative light sculpture flowing along the building’s walls, and perhaps especially, the intriguing bronze medallions inlaid in the shining terrazzo floor. At first glance, the medallions may appear to be abstract designs curiously placed along the floor. A closer look reveals a fascinating encapsulation of the natural and cultural environments of Dane County and of Wisconsin.
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 n geologic time, artist Michele Oka Doner follows the ancient tradition of telling stories through pictures. Over 900 realistic and abstract pictographs convey symbolic meanings associated with the region. Bronze medallions depict elements unique to the area, such as Wisconsin corn, ancient Native American pottery, and the state’s lakes and rivers. The pictures tell of the passage of time over thousands of years, the endless cycle of the seasons, and the ongoing interactions between people and nature. As you make your way through the lobby, certain images will be evident, others appear elusive, inviting individual interpretation.
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 t the center of the hallway and in the Rotunda area, clusters of bronze glyphs represent Native American effigy mounds. Since 3500 BC, Indian communities have created monumental earthworks of spiritual and ceremonial significance. These mounds are visible as large swells in the earth, often two to three feet high and sixteen feet across. Over 90% of all effigy mounds ever built are located in Southern Wisconsin, with over 3000 in Dane County before the majority were destroyed. The mound formations in this artwork honor the region’s original inhabitants, and pay tribute to the American Indian communities that continue to shape Wisconsin’s cultural heritage.*
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ndian effigy mounds are of various types, corresponding to symbolic associations with birds, land animals, and human figures. The abstract forms include a goose, swan, eagle, bear, mink, turtle, snake, and rabbit, among others. Traditional Native American mounds were often built in alignment with yearly positions of the sun. As with Native earthworks, the glyphic mound forms are oriented to correspond with solar solstices and equinoxes.
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rom microscopic cells to colossal natural formations, the structures that make up Wisconsin’s environment are brought together in GEOLOGIC TIME. The state’s unique terrain dates back to the Ice Age, when the region’s lakes were formed by retreating glaciers. The bronze glyphs also include natural life forms such as fish, turtles, cattails, water lilies, and salamanders inhabiting Wisconsin lake environments. Rounded abstract shapes are the living cells of amoebae or algae, the smallest creatures and plants that make up an important part of the lakes’ ecosystems. The state bird, flower, and tree – the robin, violet and maple, respectively – as well as Wisconsin’s badger make up part of the area’s natural wildlife represented in bronze. Also incorporated are reminders of past life, such as trilobite, the state fossil.
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 he cultural developments of Southern Wisconsin stem from its rich natural environment and establish a connection with the land and its resources. Over 12,000 years ago, the first inhabitants of the region left artifacts describing their way of life. These were a hunting and gathering people that cooked and stored their food in beautiful clay pots, such as the three Woodland vessels next to the central doors of the building. The design on these pots – including arrowheads and plants – reflected their makers’ hopes for a plentiful future.
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he native inhabitants began a tradition of agriculture that continues to grow and prosper. Today, farming, fishing, and animal husbandry make up the state’s world-acclaimed industries. As you stroll through the hallway, look for stalks of corn, a ripe strawberry, sprouts of seeds, a silo, and the abstract pattern of plowed fields. Also incorporated in the design are a lamb, pig, cow, and numerous varieties of fish that swim in Wisconsin’s lakes and rivers.
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 orking in conjunction with the natural environment, the people of Dane County are the region’s most important resource. Their achievements are reflected in glyphic form in the floor: agricultural developments symbolized by bronze plants and animals; architectural accomplishments represented by the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed First Unitarian church, Capitol building, and the
Alliant Energy Center Exhibition Hall; and the region’s spirit of volunteerism as seen in the contributions of Wisconsin’s veterans, represented by a bronze bugle.
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ith each day, the sunlight passes along the floor, revealing previously unrecognized images. What one day seemed like an abstract group of connected circles, the next day manifests itself as a honeycomb. A linear design becomes the outline of the Yahara lake system. A pattern of lines is the bark of a tree. The timelessness of the seasons is seen in winter snowflakes, spring buds and seeds, summer fruits, and autumn leaves. Like an ancient language, each glyph tells a story about the county, the state, and the world in which we live. *Date and interpretative materials concerning Native American effigy mounds generously provided by Larry Johns, Oneida Nation, Iroquois Confederacy. |