Join Lanesboro Artist-in-Residence, Martha Bird, for an opportunity to practice gathering and preparing local willow for weaving! Participants in this hands-on outdoor event will engage in harvesting, sorting and bundling willow at Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center. The communally collected and processed willow from this event will be used to create the outdoor sculpture that Bird will unveil at the capstone event on September 8th.
Participants in this event should meet at Eagle Bluff’s Schroeder Visitors Center parking lot at 2:45 pm on Saturday, August 27th. At 3:00 all will be driving to the harvesting location, so to participate, you must be on time! In case of rain, this event will take place on Sunday, August 28th from 2:45 to 5.
All are encouraged to bring gardening gloves, and hand-held pruners or secateurs. It is also asked that participants wear long pants with closed toe shoes. Sunscreen, mosquito spray, and drinking water are also encouraged. Garden kneelers, are encouraged for those who would benefit from their use. This activity is not labor intensive and is accessible for all with roles that vary from cutting down to removing leaves, sorting and bundling.
Register for your your participation in this free event here:
Get involved in the foundational work that goes into creating a willow art piece, and learn more about Martha Bird’s creative and material process through this immersive and hands on experience!
Lanesboro Arts is proud to feature weaver, sculptor, nurse, and mental health advocate Martha Bird as the Lanesboro Arts Artist in Residence from August 15th – September 12th, 2022.
During her residency, Bird will create and install a temporary outdoor sculpture made from fresh willow. Grounded in the potentiality for basketry to serve as a source of physical, mental, and communal healing, Bird intends to address the mental health of individuals and communities through art and art based interactions.
About Martha Bird
Educated as a Public Health and Board Certified Holistic RN, Martha’s vision is to “use my own art and process to integrate community involvement and utilize my knowledge to empower people to follow their passion and include it in their life, so they can be as well and healthy as possible.” Martha uses basketry techniques as a starting point to create expansive conceptual sculpture that both carry forward the traditional craft and challenge its utilitarian assumptions. Her work draws from her own professional expertise and life experiences to explore the human body, manifestations of trauma, and concepts of resilience, energy and growth. Martha has brought her meditative practice and depth of knowledge to lecture audiences across the United States, and her work has been featured in art exhibitions across Minnesota and throughout the country.
Click here to learn more about Martha’s residency.
The Lanesboro Artist Residency program is supported by the Jerome Foundation.
