The Wishing Tree Project by Amy Funderburk
Guests arriving at PTI will soon pause in front of a interactive installation: a large sculptural tree placed on the north side of the Departure Level behind the Meet & Greet information booth by North Carolina artist Amy Funderburk.
Inspired by sacred “wishing trees” found beside holy wells across Ireland, England, Scotland, and Wales, the piece reimagines a centuries-old tradition of tying fabric strips, or clooties, to branches as offerings or wishes. Funderburk invites visitors to write their own wishes on colorful paper clooties and tie them to the tree’s removable oak branches, allowing the work to gradually “leaf out” with notes of hope.
The installation incorporates preserved bark and trunk pieces from a 150-year-old tulip poplar that once stood in the artist’s backyard, a tree that survived a lightning strike and continued to live for more than two decades before succumbing to the elements. Its resilience and quiet endurance echo the spirit of hope that grounds the piece.
Funderburk describes The Wishing Tree as her first multimedia participatory work, one that called her “to work with materials that would not last.” Through this impermanence, the artist invites visitors to engage directly in the creative process. As more wishes are added, the branches “blossom and leaf out” with purple and green notes of hope, transforming the sculpture over time.
As you walk past, you’ll notice the bark’s fissures, the limbs reaching up, and the handwritten wishes tied by others before you. You’re invited to read a message or add your own.
