Marton Wood is a 6.6-hectare woodland near the village of Marton cum Grafton in North Yorkshire which Chrysalis Arts has leased for ten years from 2022. Mapping Marton Wood is an 18 month project developed as part of this initiative which explores the relationships people and wildlife have with this ‘unremarkable’ but extraordinary place. The project weaves artists, ecologists, and the public together, collaborating, sharing and learning from one another. Four commissioned artists have created work in response to the wood, its ecology and surroundings, and the community of Marton cum Grafton.
The artworks here will be included in an exhibition about the project that will be toured to North Yorkshire libraries, summer 2025.
Voice of the Wood, Rob Mackay with Ecologist Simon Pickles
Sound Artist Rob Mackay has been working alongside Ecologist Simon Pickles from the North and East Yorkshire Ecological Data Agency. With the help of Simon’s knowledge, Rob has created a map of the wood through sound, from the roots to the canopy and through the seasons. His audio map combines field recordings with “sonifications” (making data into sounds) of different ecological information.
Rob's work coming soon.
Shaded, Rebecca Chesney
Rebecca has created a garment and a series of photographs in response to her explorations in Marton Wood. The garment has been hand screen printed on to lengths of organic cotton and is composed of two patterns - one representing the dense, overlapping canopy of trees, the other highlighting tarcrust fungus on the trunk of a tree. Her work is a celebration of age, seasons, and the natural lifecycles, death and decay. These portraits honour the knowledge and wisdom held by both the woman and the woodland.
A Story of Mapping, David Haley
David Haley is an ecological artist, researcher and eco-pedagogue with specific interest in generating dialogues for ‘capable futures’ that question the nexus of Nature-Climate-CulturalEmergencies. Starting with the question, ‘What’s in it for the wood?’, David has created a series of redrawn and collaged maps and poems from his dialogue with scientists, artists, local people and Marton Wood. His final question is, ‘How can the unremarkable wood become commonplace?’
Find David's full set of maps, poems and videos here. 1 Dialogue with Marton Wood, 2 The Unremarkable Wood, 3 Road to Marton Wood, 4 Orientation, 5 Hold Space, 6 Learning Wood Culture, 7 Wood in Relation, 8 Unmapping, 9 Wood Draws Itself
A Score for Marton Wood, Sue Harrison
Sue Harrison has created visual representations of some of the sonograms created by Rob Mackay through his recordings at Marton Wood. These hand-stitched "scores" represent different sounds of the wood’s species, recorded at different levels within the wood. Made from silk organza, silk thread, hand made silk noile paper, silk paint and card.
Photography of Marton Wood in the exhibition, Lizzie Shepherd
Alongside the artist commissions, the exhibition features images of Marton Wood. We are very grateful to have scenes of the woodland shared with us by Photographer Lizzie Shepherd.
Lizzie is a professional photographer from the UK, specialising in landscape, nature and travel photography. She loves sharing her thoughts and experiences of photography through small group workshops, writing and presentations. Photography has been part of her life for many years and she particularly values the way it has helped her really to see and appreciate the natural world. She loves spending time in the landscape, trying to find ways of capturing both the grander scenes as well as the smaller, more hidden details. She is increasingly drawn to more complex scenes and believes that one of the absolute joys of photography is that it helps you really to open your eyes, to develop your vision and to keep searching for ways in which to express that vision. Find Lizzie on her website, on Instagram and on Facebook.
All work comissioned by Chrysalis Arts Development for Mapping Marton Wood. A special thanks to our funders Arts Council England, National Lottery Community Fund and Chrysalis Arts Development.
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