image description — 'Tree Logic,' which has lined the entrance to Mass MoCA for 25 years, will be coming down for good next week.

Mass MoCA's Iconic Upside-Down Trees Being Retired

04:43PM / Friday, October 06, 2023Print Story | Email Story

Scientists weren't sure the trees could survive being inverted; once they outgrew their tubs, they were planted earthside and thrived.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The trees will no longer grow upside-down in the Steeple City.

Natalie Jeremijenko's meditation on resiliency, "Tree Logic," will be retired after 25 years of turning heads at the entrance to Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art.

The museum announced on its Facebook page this week that the trees will be removed. They will be on view until Monday.

The trees themselves haven't been there that long. Every so often, a new group of saplings is installed and their elders retired to grow naturally on Stone Hill at the Clark Art Institute, which funded the installation, and Colegrove Park, where museum visitors have been known to check on their condition. This last set will remain on the campus, at the end of the Speedway.

"This work, like Mass MoCA itself, defies logic and gravity while signaling that creativity comes in all forms. Jeremijenko conceived of Tree Logic as a work about change and persistence, as trees themselves are dynamic natural systems constantly in flux. In this work, the trees grow while upside down, yet they still instinctively reach for the sunlight," the museum wrote. "MASS MoCA is a non-collecting museum. The artworks on view range from new commissions organized with artists to loans from artists, galleries, estates, and collectors. So at some point, like the trees themselves, things must change."

Although a popular image here, the trees did evince a range of emotions, with some viewers disturbed at the distortion of nature.

Jeremijenko, also an engineer, had spoken with botanists when designing the installation. According to the museum's audio tour, the scientists were divided on how gravity would affect the trees once they were inverted. The trees grew and their branches curved toward the sun; once taken down and put right side up, they gracefully returned to their natural state.

"The branches correct themselves and bear little sign of their early beginnings, speaking to the resiliency of nature, cities and towns, and museums," posted Mass MoCA.

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Friends of the North Adams Public Library Book Sale Opens Today

Jack GuerinoiBerkshires Staff
05:34AM / Friday, September 25, 2026

NORTH ADAMS, Mass.— Surrounded by stacks of books, volunteers were busy setting up Thursday morning for the Friends of the Library's primary annual fundraiser in St. Elizabeth's Parish Hall.

"We have so many books; we have so many boxes," Friends President Bonnie Rennell said Thursday morning during the book sale setup.

The book sale is a major fundraiser for the Friends that allows them to support a variety of library programming. Rennell said it, along with their membership drive, is one of the Friends' two main fundraising events.

"This is important," she said. "Without this, we would not be able to do half of what we do."

There is no firm consensus on how long a book sale has been supporting the library.

"Way before my time. The Friends are 51 years old, but I don't know," Rennell said, before shouting, "Who knows when the book sale started here?"

There was no immediate answer over the shuffling of books and background mumbles, but a few stalwart Friends determined that at least 25 years sounded right. Members were fairly sure the sale was once held on the library's front lawn.

Over those 25 years, Rennell said, the book sale has become a well-oiled machine—the product of a highly organized system that usually starts in February. During that time, the Friends collect books and sort them in the church basement. Seven months later, it is showtime.

"We have it set up, a lot like this," Rennell said, pointing to the dozens of tables with books fanned out across them. "It is a new innovation. We put the signs on the tables with empty boxes, and we fill them. We collect for seven months, and then it takes us a few weeks to decide what goes to auction and what is special."

Prices are set quickly and casually; Rennell noted the Friends have been at it long enough to assign dollar values easily.

"People have been doing this a long time," she said. "Cookbooks are always $1. We don't even label them. I think fiction is all $2.

The event offers more than just books: visitors can also purchase CDs, DVDs, puzzles, games, and even baked goods.

Setup happens fast. While one might think the sale takes weeks to arrange, the Friends arrive the day before and are done in a matter of hours. Rennell explained that the books are already organized and ready to go before they even come upstairs.

Rennell added that the Friends receive plenty of help from city staff, library staff, and volunteers. Simple tasks, like carrying boxes of books up and down the stairs, are deeply appreciated.

She noted that year after year, donations continue to grow—often including recently published books. It is a surprising trend in a digital age where some new media is no longer even sold in physical format, she said.

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