Every winter, as we plan the next Northern Woodlands Conference, we search out a few speakers who don’t, at first glance, have much to do with northeastern forests. These “surprise” speakers help to shake up the event, offering new approaches to creative expression.
Erica Heilman is a 2018 example; she wowed the crowd last year with her description of how she creates her audio stories for her popular podcast, Rumble Strip. Erica will be joining us again this October, sharing recordings that she produced with us through the Resilient Forest project. For anyone who missed her audio stories relating to logging and deer herd management, you can find them here.
Artist Chris Maynard, a new speaker this year, also falls in the “surprise” category. His feather carvings – beautifully exploiting the feathers’ form, texture, and shadow – are unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. Some of Chris’s works are on a grand scale – ambitious designs that surge up the walls of museums and hotel lobbies. However, what first captured my interest, what had me cold-calling him one day last winter and pestering him to come to Vermont – are his shadow boxes. I love the intimacy of these designs, and the way that they often refer to birds’ habitat and behavior.
Chris provided images of woodpecker-themed shadow boxes for this blog, in keeping with the Northern Woodlands logo. If you enjoy these images, I encourage you to take a look at his website. There you can watch a video describing his artistic process, and review his portfolio. What a compelling way to celebrate birds, and to promote their conservation.
