Overview

M12 Studio’s Black Forest Institute is an outdoor public artwork that operates as an experimental art and forestry school. The institute is conceived as an active knowledge-sharing platform of fireside dialogues and skill sharing events around topics as diverse as: forest fire prevention, personal stories, revegetating in the forest, axe sharpening, the forest as pantry, and skills such as tree felling, tree planting and two-person saw techniques.

The campus consists of three primary elements; the woodshed, a rural inspired structure made from rough cut timber, a work bench, and an outdoor fireplace. This space is unique in that it is constructed out of wood harvested from regional burn scar areas. Already burned once by wildfire, the pieces of wood used during the fireside events are odiferous, charred, drip with sap, and resonate as fuel for igniting generative conversations and new intentions for this unprecedented moment.

FIRESIDE DIALOGUES

M12 STUDIO in collaboration with curator Daisy McGowan have programmed discussions through the Black Forest Institute at the Ent Center for the Arts Sculpture Green. Each Fireside Dialogue is an opportunity for sharing knowledge, stories and wisdom about our regional forests, trees, and woodlands. The Black Forest Institute is interested in providing space for constructively addressing the complexities of forest fire and related subjects such as fire impact, rural futures, and global climate awareness.