Lodestar is a sculptural poetic statement that explores the layered histories and rehabilitation of Biidaasige Park.

For LAT’s commission, Lisa Hirmer builds on her series Careful Infrastructures for Reassembled Lands, a collection of short poetic texts installed across Toronto’s harbour, on the waterfront at Merchant’s Wharf. These earlier works responded to the initial phases of the Port Lands and Don River mouth restoration.

In Lodestar, Hirmer's text stacks ideas and facts of the site’s past, present, and future. The poem begins with the formation of the Don valley and lakeshore through glacial melt, moves through recent soil remediation that revealed ancient seeds capable of germination, and concludes with the flood protection works that enabled the creation of the park system.

The title Lodestar refers to a guiding star, used literally and metaphorically to suggest a navigational aid or guiding principle. The polished chrome surface mirrors its surroundings, continually transforming in response to the local environment and playing witness to the newly planted trees and vegetation maturing over time.