Art and the Environment: The Tree Museum

Joni Mitchell sang “they took all the trees and put'em in a tree museum.” and there it is, the Tree Museum, near Bracebridge Ontario. It is in fact a contemporary art outdoor gallery, with a mix of permanent pieces and annual exhibitions. As artist Johannes Zits says, it is about “looking for ways to relate to, and deal with the environment through art.” This year sixteen artists from Canada and Asia have been invited to create an exhibition called “what is place”. Lorna Mills is “going to reproduce Google Earth images in plaster and select the lichen and moss to plunk them down onto.” The artists will work all summer toward an opening on September 16th; visitors are welcome to watch them work and see the permanent collection. And, thanks to the Ontario Arts council and the Canada Council, unlike Joni's Tree Museum, its free. ::The Tree Museum via ::the Muskoka Sun