FitzGerald created “Rainforest” for WWU in 1959 and installed the piece where Haggard Hall now stands in 1960. The fountain was relocated to outside the Wade King Recreation center. FitzGerald uses bronze to emulate the trees one might see in the rainforest along the Olympic Peninsula. As an abstract expressionist, FitzGerald was concerned with representing the feelings that were evoked while in nature. Not only do the jagged edges of bronze represent the beautiful perfection of nature, but the water feature reminds viewers of the temperate climate we live in. The noises the water makes as it hits the bronze sculptures reminds viewers of what it sounds and feels like to be walking under the canopy of the Hoh Rainforest in the Olympic Peninsula.

Fitzgerald’s goals were to take natural forms such as trees, rocks, and leaves, and transform them into something people could experience in bronze or stone sculpture. His original intent within his work, was to bring an element of the beauty of the PNW to heavily man-made institutions. Also, to investigate how people/the body interact(s) with these pieces. FitzGerald also made a point to investigate how Native American cultures found inspiration and emotional connection with the nature that surrounded them. In talking about his later works, FitzGerald is quoted in saying he intends to evoke turbulence and a search for levels of human consciousness,” (FitzGerald, 1962). This method of thinking is evident in this fountain as it invites viewers to literally sit and contemplate our understanding and appreciation of nature.

He is well-known on Western Washington University’s campus for “The Rain Forest” because it is placed in one of the busiest areas on campus, by the Rec Center. All of his pieces are featured in popular areas with lots of traffic, from Downtown Seattle, to the South end of WWU’s campus.