Woven Woods

Woven Woods: A Journey Through the Forest Floor by Lorraine Roy
June 2 – November 4, 2018

Feel the deep-rooted connection between trees and their ecosystems through this series of quilted wall hangings, inspired by Dr. Suzanne Simard’s research at UBC.

 

In the top six inches of the forest floor lies a vast and flourishing communication system as old as photosynthesis itself. This exquisitely balanced symbiotic relationship between mycorrhizal fungi and tree roots provides a network of channels for resources and messages between individual trees. The resulting plant chatter is as complex and efficient as our own worldwide web. In recent research, biologists have discovered the existence of Mother trees: larger, older specimens that, with the help of their fungi, serve as system hubs in life, and as nutrient pumps in death. This mycorrhizal network thus connects and stabilizes the forest, and by extension, our entire planet’s biosphere.

Born and raised in rural Southwestern Ontario, Lorraine Roy developed an early appreciation for the land and its natural beauty. Her introduction to the fabric arts at her mother’s knee began a lifelong passion for textile art. Using raw edge fabric appliqué and machine embroidery, she builds images that bridge science and spirituality with the surprising versatility of fabrics and threads.

Exhibition contributers

 

Curator
Yukiko Stranger-Galey

Designers
Derek Tan
Alirod Ameri

Fabricator
Lesha Koop

Scientific Curator
Linda Jennings

Education Advisor
Kashifa Hafeez