After a few challenging years, I am thrilled to say I have new writing included in an upcoming exhibit “In a Time of Change: Boreal Forest Stories.” (Opening on Sept 2 at Bear Gallery in Fairbanks 4-6pm. More details can be found at Events) This is the culmination of a two-year multi disciplinary program that was founded in 2008, to foster collaboration between the arts, humanities, and sciences. itoc.alaska.edu Here’s the story of my unexpected collaboration with Fairbanks artist Klara Maisch.

IN A TIME OF CHANGE: BOREAL FOREST STORIES

It was in December 2021, when painter Klara Maisch and I spoke on the phone for the first time. Having participated in ITOC Zoom presentations since November 2020, we talked about our shared interests in the boreal forest: seasonal shifts, wildfire succession, and nutrient cycling in layers of soil. By the end of that first conversation, we agreed to be penpals of sorts. My words and Klara’s paintings would be the language of a spontaneous call and response. This was an experiment; we decided to see what would unfold.

I began by writing about walking a forested trail. Klara responded with several images suggesting layers of time. That simple beginning sparked a dialog that explored our common experience: reckoning with change. Though we still had not met in person, Klara and I discovered that we both centered our lives around wilderness—and that each of us had suffered the loss of a friend whose spirit continued to be woven into the mysterious boreal landscape we call home. Heartened by our unfolding conversation, Klara and I met in person in March. We skied together, followed the tracks of an ermine, and delighted in refining Solace of Circles. More recently, Klara and I have finished a second piece, Two Trees — an outgrowth of that original conversation.

Klara and I are grateful to have tapped into the collaborative spirit inspired by the innovative program, In a Time of Change: Boreal Forest Stories. itoc.alaska.edu. Interactions and consultations with scientists Becky Hewitt, Jill Johnstone, and Teresa Hollingsworth enhanced our understanding of cycles in the boreal ecosystem. Becky Hewitt furthered our appreciation of permafrost’s thaw front, where frozen microbes from ages past return to life, with far-reaching implications that span the threshold between earth and air. Klara and I were thrilled when Becky traveled to Denali to work with us this summer.

Klara and I believe in the power of collaboration. My work would not exist in its present form without Klara’s images, nor would her images be the same in the absence of my words. Solace of Circles and Two Trees are conversations between an artist and a writer, heightened by the voices of dear friends Mary Kaye Denkewalter (1953-2021) and Marybeth Wikander (1990-2020).