Cut Here: Instruction, Command, Option

Fluorescent pink surveyor’s tape wrapped around tree trunks at a consistent height across a wooded area.



  Environmental / United States of America

Fluorescent pink surveyor’s tape—the same material used to mark trees for removal—was wrapped around trees throughout the woodland at The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. From specific lines of sight, the scattered ribbons aligned into a single horizontal plane, visually cutting across the forest. Shift position, and the demarcation dissolves.  ▧







Forest path view showing pink surveyor’s tape appearing fragmented as perspective shifts between trees.
Dense woodland view with pink tape wrapped around multiple tree trunks at the same elevation.
Close view of pink surveyor’s tape wrapped tightly around tree bark, marking a consistent horizontal position.
View across forest terrain where scattered tape segments visually align into a continuous line.
Section of the installation showing pink tape distributed across irregular tree spacing.
Aligned tape forming a straight horizontal visual plane across the forest when viewed from a fixed position.
Winter view of the installation with pink tape wrapped around leafless trees.


Close perspective showing broken alignment of pink tape as the viewer moves through the forest.

Cut Here: Instruction, Command, Option, 2003, 2005 (video)
Edward Dormer

Public art, environmental work
The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA
Presented by: InLiquid, The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education
Production assistance: Elisa Buratto



Wide view of pink tape segments aligning into a horizontal line across trees from a specific vantage point in the forest.