Garden of Learning is one of Ohe’s many kinetic sculptures--artworks that compel viewers to physically interact with them--and one of three Ohe works on the U of C campus (Zipper can be found in the Math Science Complex, and Earth Probe is located in the Esso Research Park). Unfortunately, however, after students were seen to push each other while sitting atop the sculpture’s movable elements, the joints were tightened to prevent future misuse.
The three forms of the sculpture symbolize the University itself: the roots, cradle, and tree of knowledge, which were all intended to rotate and revolve. The welded circular frame symbolizes the cyclical nature of learning; the grid within the circle represents the connectedness of knowledge.