2024 FORESTSONG EVENTS
ForestSong is an art project by Andie Thrams that investigates grief, beauty, and interconnection; shares images and science; invokes the sacred; bears witness; and invites action. The project centers on painting prayer flags to deepen appreciation of and connection to forests, address environmental despair, and celebrate biophilia. The project also shares contemporary wildfire and forest ecology, and suggests actionable steps to foster environmental stewardship for individuals and communities.
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I hope you will join me at an upcoming ForestSong event, make Forest Prayer Flags, learn about forest and wildfire ecology, and share this process with others!
Andie
FORESTSONG:
Free Public Event!
Arts in Nature Fest
April 28, 2024
10am—2pm
Georgetown Nature Area, Georgetown, California
All ages and abilities are invited to participate in the ForestSong art project during this annual gathering held in the Georgetown Nature Area! Activities will include a collaborative painting process to create giant Forest Prayer Flags, poetry readings and writing, and forest science and wildfire preparedness information sharing. We’ll celebrate biophilia, address environmental losses, and deepen our connection to Sierra forests and each other.
FORESTSONG:
Presentation & Outdoor Workshop
Mono Basin Bird Chautauqua
Presentation: June 21, 2024, 1pm—2:30pm
Outdoor Art Workshop: June 22, 2024, 9am—noon
Lee Vining, California
Learn about and participate in my ForestSong art project during this annual gathering at Mono Lake. I’ll share how I paint forest prayer flags in remote forests and how this process deepens connection to forests, addresses environmental despair, and celebrates biophilia. In our workshop we’ll paint forest prayer flags beneath the trees, using ink and wildfire charcoal.
PAINTING FOREST PRAYER FLAGS
San Francisco State University | Sierra Nevada Field Campus
July 21-26, 2024 (details soon!)
North Fork Yuba River, California
This six-day course shares the watercolor, ink, and acrylic painting practices I use in my ForestSong art project. We'll create paintings and prayer flags on paper and canvas to evoke what is seen and experienced beneath the trees in and around the Sierra Nevada Field Campus— my favorite mountain retreat. Step-by-step painting processes with watercolor and acrylic will explore into biophilia—that rich human pleasure that comes from being surrounded by living organisms. We’ll also use ink and wildfire charcoal to address solastalgia—the emotional pain that comes from witnessing environmental degradation in places we love.
FORESTSONG:
Painting Forest Prayer Flags
Balanced Rock
October 10-13, 2024
Yosemite National Park, California
The ForestSong project centers on the ancient belief that winds carry blessings depicted on prayer flags across the landscape to all beings. During our time together we will share art and meditation practices to explore biophilia (joyful immersion in nature) and solastalgia (sadness about environmental damage) as we wander in Yosemite National Park’s beautiful forests. We’ll paint, sketch, write, mediate, walk, study forest ecology, camp, and cook together in a secluded Yosemite Valley campground.