Forest Bound (Autumn 2022 and Winter 2023) was a collaboration between Tamsin Grainger, lead artist , Juan Pablo Lobo-Guerrero from the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. and the Edinburgh and Lothians Regional Equality Council (ELREC). Written in Film documented the project.
Forest Bound was created so that those who face additional barriers in accessing nature and outdoor spaces could interact with forests. We worked with Edinburgh-based ethnic minority groups in forest landscapes using art and science. The emphasis was on sharing experiences and knowledge, and extending understanding.
Adaptation and Resilience
We organised forest walks and a workshop session where we used visual arts to explore people's connection to forests and begin conversations on how these overlap with key biological processes such as adaptation and resilience. Material from the activities was curated and displayed at a community group art exhibition in Edinburgh in February 2023.
Foraging for fungi in the Caledonian Forest near Loch Rannoch
We travelled to the Black Wood of Rannoch, a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a Forest Nature Reserve and one of the last remaining old Caledonian forests, and to Roslin Glen, a semi-natural, ancient woodland.
The group at Roslin Glen outside Edinburgh. Autumn 2022
On the way, we talked about forests we have visited and why they are important to us and our communities. It was clear that forests mean different things within different cultures: for some they are a source of food or healing herbs, for others a place to meet. They are both a source of stories and enjoyed for recreation.
Finding out about The Gunner’s Tree at the Black Wood of Rannoch, Forest Bound Autumn 2023
When we arrived, we walked on springy paths, touched dry bark and squelchy sphagnum moss, listened to “happy” water, “wild wind” in the trees, and our own laughter. We smelled tangy pine resin and rich humus, tasted delicious berries and foraged earthy fungi. We measured the shapes of lichen and the girth of trees.
We were using all our senses to discover the forest at Roslin Glen, and our conversation was translated
In the Black Wood, underneath the Gunnar’s Tree, and in a clearing at Roslin Glen, we made art in response to our sensory exploration.
Forest Bound: taking bark rubbings
Participants commented that these day trips were a welcome respite from daily life, and we realised how crucial co-operation and kinship are to us all.
Danka with her artwork, Forest Bound community workshop, Macdonald Road Library Edinburgh. January 2023
Back in Edinburgh, at Macdonald Road Library, we met again to deepen our understanding of the places we visited through making art and talking and singing together. We thought about the various layers of the forest and what goes on in them, from the canopy to the subsoil. We focused on identifying native species and leaf morphology, and we exchanged the names of what we had found in the forest in our many languages.
The Forest Bound exhibition at Out of the Blue, Edinburgh. Film by Written in Film
Games helped us learn about the different types of forest in the UK, including plantations which are so predominant in the Scottish landscape. Our conversations were about how trees, plants, rivers, lochs and humans are all adapting to climate changes and demonstrating their ability to adjust and survive. Simply breathing in fresh air and oxygen in these beautiful places are vital to body and mind, we agreed.
Forest Bound exhibition at Out of the Blue, Edinburgh. February 2023
The exhibition at Out of the Blue in Edinburgh consisted entirely of artwork made by the participants during the walks and in the workshop session where we remembered our visits to the forests.
Making a communal banner. Forest Bound community art workshop at McDonald Road Library, Edinburgh
Forest Bound was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) as part of the Growing Roots 2 call and was a partnership between the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), Edinburgh and Lothians Regional Equality Council (ELREC), artist Tamsin Grainger, and Written in Film.
Kim drawing at the Forest Bound exhibition. Out of the Blue, Edinburgh. February 2023
““My awareness was possibly because everything was aware” ”
Examples of artwork made in response to the Forest Bound exhibition at Out of the Blue, Edinburgh. February 23
Other Forest Bound links
The Forest Bound film can be viewed via this link. There is further photographic documentation and information on the project here. The report of the exhibition opening is here.
Exhibition opening at Out of the Blue February 2023