1. Improbable Monument The Ties That Bind: Norway to NY

2. Proposed Monument- Origin & Concept A monument to commemorate the journey by sea of Scandinavian immigrants to the US. Origin of my paternal ancestry having sailed from Norway in the late 1800’s. Economic pressures & lack of open land drove approx. 1 million Swedes, 800,000 Norwegians, & 500,000 Danes & Finns to set out by sea in search of new prospects. US Homestead Act of 1862 offered free land to settlers who would develop it for at least 5 yrs.

3. Monument based on myth/story of holding one end of a spool of thread or ribbon on board a departing ship, the other end held by loved ones on the dock until the spool runs out. Creation of metal ribbons to bridge 4,534 miles between NY & the Western coast of Norway.

4. Ariadne & Theseus- the golden thread Related to the story of spools of thread on departing ships: the Greek myth of Ariadne’s golden thread given to Theseus to find his way out of the labyrinth after slaying the Minotaur. The golden thread leading him home and back to love > symbol of home coming & of origins or point of departure on a journey

5. Site Origin Points for Monument: Ellis Island, NY & Stavanger, Norway

6. Materials & Design Stainless Steel- high tensile strength, corrosion resistant and Cor-ten Steel- “Weathering steel,” naturally oxidizes over time giving a rough textured rusty appearance (will not hold up as long in a salty wet environment, but aesthetically pleasing for near-shore) Metal “ribbons” will splay out & then gather at piling points, steel piles driven into the ocean floor to a certain depth, followed by other off-shore technologies such as > buoyancy supports

7. At both Ellis Island, NY & Stavanger, Norway, the metal “ribbons” will splay out from the mouth of a traditional Scandinavian mast-head, the ship appearing to be rising from the water and pulled out to sea by the threads at the bow.

8. Threads at Stavanger, Norway- aerial view

9. Approx 4,534 miles of Monument