Hello! It’s the Looking After The Wildness group, here. Thanks for visiting our blog! We will upload regularly here so keep checking back…maybe your creation will feature on here one day? We hope so! In the meantime, here are some pieces our trees have inspired so far….enjoy!
Photography
We love these contrasting images; you can almost feel the Summer’s breeze and the Winter’s frost!
What changes do you notice in your tree as the seasons change?
Drawing
Great to see the way River has explored his tree using different media. He spent lots of time studying the tree in detail and paid attention to every leaf. His colour work reminds us of the artist Georges Seurat!
Which different techniques might you use to capture the beauty of your tree?
Poetry
Sitting under a tree and writing a poem is such a lovely way to spend time. Two of our group imagined what it would be like to be the tree – a huge Oak and a tall Poplar. Lani wrote her poem from the Oak’s point of view; the Poplar poem is a series of questions that the author addresses to this magnificent tree.
Have you ever tried writing a poem? What does your tree inspire you to say?
Natural Art
In the Autumn, we had a great time exploring our trees through what they’d dropped on the ground! When you start looking carefully, it’s amazing to see how many beautiful colours and interesting textures and shapes there are. A group of us made a colour wheel together which was a fun joint activity. We also had a go at creating some well-known characters – can you spot Hermione, Dumbledore, Ron and Harry (in his invisibility cloak!)?
Mixed media
Cave’s creation is very meaningful. After spending time with his tree, he was reminded of special words and attitudes passed down to him from older members of his family, and reflected on how there is wisdom in family and nature. Cave painted a beautiful picture of his tree, and created this wonderful frame from natural materials and quotes which mean a lot to him.
What wisdom do you learn from your tree? How does your tree connect you to family or childhood?
A scientific approach
Henry is listening to the sap rising in this tree. It’s still too early and cold, so he hasn’t heard anything yet, but he’s noticing the signs of Spring each week and keeps coming back to check. What will Henry’s experiments produce? Maybe a report, a video, a diagram or something else… How could you share what you learn about your tree?
Can’t get to Hall Park?….No problem!
Here are two wonderful photos from contributors who don’t live near Hall Park. Everyone is welcome to join this project. We were awed by this majestic oak, and think it looks very striking in black and white. This fungi was growing on the trunk of a tree in a contributor’s local park – we think they look a bit like mini pancakes!
Do you know someone who would like to join in this project but can’t get to the park? Let them know they’re welcome to take part where they are!
Thanks for reading – we’ll upload some more inspiration next month. Have fun with the trees!
From everyone at Looking After The Wildness