Laumeier Sculpture Park, 12580 Rott Road , Saint Louis, MO, 63127, United States: Wak’a Garden

Begin Again: Wak'a Garden is the second installment in Laumeier’s Begin Again series, honoring the Park’s 50-year history of collaborating with artists and supporting new commissions and exhibitions. The organic, amphitheater-shaped sculpture, built from natural materials Laumeier’s grounds, features ceramic hive-shaped vessels and a chemical-free teaching garden.

It will serve as a multisensory space for reverence, gathering, educational workshops, and live performances. The project debuts April 18, 2026, in conjunction with Art & Nature Day, inviting visitors all ages to explore art, nature, and community through hands-on activities and creative play.

Chávez and Torrez’s Wak’a Garden is a multisensory space for ritual and reverence. The organic, amphitheater-like sculpture—built from natural materials such as fallen trees, branches, mud and rocks recovered from the Park—forms a habitat and sacred monument dedicated to native plants and pollinators.

The installation features ceramic hive-shaped vessels created by Chávez and a teaching garden shaped by Torrez’s interpretation of the natural habitat. Wak’as communicate when activated by sounds, movement, environmental signals, rituals, and collective experiences.

A core principle in relating to Wak’as is reciprocity: humans offer care, respect, and symbolic gifts, and in return, Wak’as provide guidance, protection, alignment with the environment, and opportunities for self-realization. Wak’a Garden invites visitors to reconsider their relationship with nature, emphasizing how care for the land can benefit the ecosystem and generate cultural and creative meaning.

By blurring the lines between disciplines, Chávez and Torrez aim to create a vibrant tapestry of mixed-media projects and programs.