About Forest Art Wisconsin - Native/Invasive
» Forest Art Wisconsin is a series of events dealing with the idea of Nativeness and Invasivness from an ecological, social and artistic perspective. «
ARTISTS SYMPOSIUM: May 29th till June 15th, 2007 on Raven Trail in the Northern Highland American Legion State Forest
OPENING WEEKEND of Forest Art Wisconsin: Sat / Sun June 16th and 17th, 2007 on Raven Trail
GUIDED TOURS and duration of Forest Art Wisconsin until the fall of 2007
Forest Art Wisconsin invites you to combine a walk on Raven Nature Trail with a unique art-viewing experience. For the first time, the 1.5 mile Raven Nature Trail will be
the site of a three-week international artists symposium. Starting May 29, 28 artists will work on their installations and performances while living together in Minocqua. They
will be supported by a University of Wisconsin–Madison summer session class.
Forest Art Wisconsin’s theme of “Native/Invasive” came out of numerous discussions German curator Ute Ritschel had with forest workers and experts, and it aims to make visible the forest’s ecological, social, and historical nativeness and invasiveness. The natural environment of the forest will serve as a laboratory for the artists, who will also have the opportunity to work with naturalists,foresters, and biologists. The site-specific installations and performances invite interaction. All visitors will have the chance to see the art works’ evolution process from May 29 through June 15 during the symposium. After completion, the installations will stay in the forest all summer and possibly for years to come.
The international artists come from Argentina, Finland, Germany, Scotland and the United States. Several of the artists are UW–Madison faculty from the Design Studies Program and the Art, Landscape Architecture and Art History Departments. The Forest Art Wisconsin project is modeled on the International Forest Art Path in Darmstadt, Germany. Some of the German participants are supported as Hessen-Wisconsin sister-state artists. Since 2002 the Darmstadt Forest has been the site of the Biennale. The topics were Research (2002), Expedition (2004) and Laboratory (2006), which supported the cooperation of artists and scientists.
Forest Art Wisconsin is working on extensive community outreach. We invite you to participate in the Thursday Forums, a series of presentations and discussions about the artists’ work. There will be daily guided tours beginning Monday June 4 at 3:30 pm showing the progress of the art works. A series of “Kids Meet Artists” tours for children are also planned, to encourage children to engage in the art making process and to interact with artists. Forest Art Wisconsin will be conducting guided tours through the end of September.
A catalogue documenting the symposium will be available in the fall.
The three main themes of Native/Invasive for Forest Art Wisconsin are:
- ecological aspect: native/invasive behaviour in nature, especially in fauna and flora
- social aspect: native/invasive in terms of history, social setting and migration
- artistic aspect: native/invasive behaviour of art in the forest and in natural settings
Native/Invasive will provide the opportunity to work with the species and plants of the forest, to reflect invasive behaviour towards nature and in nature, to think of native and invasive treatment in ecological and social settings, to use native and invasive materials, to consider sustainability and ecological equilibrium, to see nature in connection to art as native or invasive matter.
Curator
Ute Ritschel from Darmstadt, Germany, is presently Artist in Residence at the Art Department of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is organising the conference "Native/Invasive" and curating Forest Art Wisconsin as part of her residency.
