amaptocare is a large-scale public art work, in the form of a participative sponsored tree-planting project in Ballymun on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. Proposed by German conceptual artist Jochen Gerz and commissioned by Breaking Ground on behalf of Dublin City Council's Ballymun Regeneration Limited as a percent for art scheme, it involved planting semi-mature trees in each neighbourhood of Ballymun, each with a personal comment from its sponsor inscribed on a nearby metal lectern. Over 630 trees from a choice of 15 mostly native varieties were sponsored, most by locals and other Dubliners, and 620 were planted by 2006.

amaptocare was the largest and longest-running of the arts projects funded as part of the massive regeneration of Ballymun, on which over 1.5 billion euro was spent. Begun in 2003, the project formally ended in 2017 - but three elements at Ballymun's civic plaza remain to be completed, namely an illuminated map of the project, inscription of sponsor names, and the planting of the "first fifteen" sponsored trees, one of each variety. There was a wide welcome for the new trees, and arts critics commented on the positive engagement of the project, but there were also questions from some locals about the mandatory sponsorship element. Aside from amaptocare, Ballymun Regeneration also engaged in a general tree-planting project.

As part of the Ballymun Renewal Scheme, which had a planned public sector spend of hundreds of millions of euro, and total plans exceeding 2.5 billion euro,^[1] a combined percent for art programme was deployed through the Breaking Ground arts organisation established under the oversight of Dublin City Council's Ballymun Regeneration Limited.^[2] Breaking Ground sponsored a range of artworks, but also advertised by open call, in 2002, for a major project. Ultimately, two options were considered: a sculpture by American public artist Jeff Koons, whose works already commanded high prices but some of which were seen as "draws" or tourist attractions, or a participatory public artwork by conceptual artist Jochen Gerz.^[3] Gerz, German-born, Paris-resident, and with dozens of public and participative art projects completed, had visited Ballymun in 2002, and had noticed the lack of trees, commenting "My first reaction was, this is a 'no-fly zone' for birds. It's very mineral, very planned, very geometrical. There is very little organic confidence, as if everybody needed to be planned, as if life could not happen in confidence."^[4]

After further reading in Irish mythology, in which he noted the prominence of trees and woods, Gerz put tree planting at the centre of his project proposal. He further explained that he saw "the trees as breaking up the public and civic space of Ballymun", which he feared would otherwise be streamlined and anodyne, and that "It's nice to interrupt a little bit the monotony of the computer drawings."^[4][5] The project fitted within Gerz's "participatory art" area of work, including his perception that active involvement in art is important to democracy and the sense of community, and that the role of artist is not an isolated one: "The division of the world into artists and audiences endangers democracy" and this theme was reflected in the comments by some art critics reviewing amaptocare as discussed in the Reception section below.^[6]

The Gerz proposal was selected, and proceeded as the largest,^[7] and one of the two highest-funded, Ballymun arts projects,^[8] with a budget described as exceeding 250,000 euro,^{[lower-alpha 1]} and a duration from December 2003 to December 2017.^[9] While some arts-related construction projects have cost much more, amaptocare has even been described as Ireland's largest arts project.^[10] amaptocare was commissioned in late 2003 by Aisling Prior, the director of Breaking Ground, who also acted as producer,^[11] and was named amaptocare, derived from "a map to care". The project manager, also working as producer, was Sheena Barrett.^[9] The artist moved with his wife, Laurence Vanpoulle, to Sneem, County Kerry^[9] while overseeing amaptocare,^[12] and they settled there.^[13]

A further community tree-planting project was proposed by locals, to be coordinated by Jochen Gerz and his team, as a memorial to the Ballymun Towers, the seven "signature" tallest of the Ballymun Flats blocks. To be named the National Memory Grove, this would have been a densely-planted hectare of oak trees. Land was allocated by Dublin Corporation on the road from central Ballymun towards Dublin Airport, and the first 40 sponsors secured, but the project did not go ahead.^[4]

While reporting that the project was fully subscribed, and describing the artist as an "impressive figure" and "tireless negotiator" the Irish Times reported in late 2004 that there was some adverse comment about aspects of amaptocare.^[8] More than one questioned the requirement for a donation, and the artist explained that he wanted a feeling of ownership, as opposed to impersonal municipal planting.^[19] and said "that it could be possible that a work of art would not suffer from the presence of the people but, on the contrary, it would get better with the presence of the people" and that "The project is 'a little practical study of democracy'." A research project by Peter Dowie on arts projects and the Ballymun schemes also picked up some negative commentary about amaptocare, even "community animosity", with one community development worker at the Ballymun Partnership describing it as "...an arrogant proposal .. an extremely ambitious project .. very expensive with no room for evaluation .. and impractical within an area going through regeneration", an artistic director and activist referring to "patronisation of the community", and the researcher summarising some local reactions with: "The idea was that ownership of the tree would be both an inducement to, and a symbol of, their new commitment to caring for their area. Resentment toward the project stemmed from the fact it was perceived as patronizing and misunderstood the level at which residents had always demonstrated their ‘caring’ and sense of responsibility during 3 decades of civic neglect. The act of purchase also became a problem. It suggested further civic disrespect in charging residents living on social welfare for what would be given free in wealthier areas of Dublin",^[15] although in fact there was also municipally-fully funded tree planting during the area's regeneration.^[9]

Comments from artists and arts critics praised the participative and expressive nature of the work, and included art critic Jeremy Hunt saying that "Gerz has inversed [sic] the idea of imposed 'gifts' of social housing, institutional urbanism and cultural artefacts ... invited the population of Ballymun to donate, to contribute by paying for their own environment."^[22] Marion Hohlfeldt remarked that Gerz was giving residents of an area which had been the focus of a "bad news" approach the opportunity to narrate their own history, to be, as Gerz put it, "new elites" and that the project was multi-layered, and had changed the atmosphere within the district during regeneration^[23] - and a local artist involved in the scheme, John Duffy, described it as "providing a space for the donor, offering a way in which they can make a mark for themselves." and referred to one sponsor's perception of the work as "the provision of a second chance for her life in Ballymun. With the physical and emotional changes that are happening to her life, she can mark them with her words on the lectern for her tree", emphasising the "power of the project in the texts and the .. individuals and groups involved in the articulation of those words."^[24]

• List of public art in Dublin