Frankie Carino

“Garry’s Hole” is a large earthwork excavated into a hillside in South Woodstock, Vermont. Designed as a sitting area and fire pit, the earthwork was dug down to a mica-rich rock shelf floor. A staircase, bench, and a pair of single seats were carved into the perimeter, allowing for a comfortable entrance and hangout. A large berm hides the interior and any occupants from view from the closest road. The earthwork was sown with grass seed, camouflaging the piece into the hillside. Unless looking with a keen or knowing eye, the Hole is invisable to passersby.

Located in an area of Southern Vermont with a number of prehistoric megalithic rock chapels. One of these chapels is roughly 1,000’ away from the hole. The origins of the chapels are possibly Celtic dating back to 1,000BCE. This date is based on engravings at a site believed to be a dead Celtic language called Ogam.

An impression in the landscape, who’s longevity is unknown, the Hole is reminiscent of Earth Mounds scattered across North America. These mounds are believed to have been built by the a collection of varying tribes termed “the Mound Builders”. The purposes of these mounds, like megaliths, is often believed to be structured around religion and ritual.

The Hole functions in a strange way, it fakes a history while attempting to be lasting. Beyond a few people, and you, the hole doesn’t exist. If it does, its function, conception, and desired future is mysterious. Beyond some primary source neighbors watching a man dig on a hill side, its creation date is unknown.

The name Garry has a double meaning. Simi, the wonderful, who allowed me to make this hole, calls me Garry as a nickname. She alone coined this name some years ago. Unaware of one of my closest friends named Garry Canino.

Many of the Earth Mounds that spotted North America have worn away from erosion and farming, but still some have lasted thousands of years. Garry’s Hole will last as it needs, acting as an escape, a gathering place, a bunker, hopefully a snow mobile jump, and a place for some kids, maybe one day my own, to devils lettuce.