Ghost Trees Artist Statement
Ghost Trees series explores series that explores loss, longing, and the search for home in an ever-changing landscape. The project investigates the liminal space between what was, what is and what will be in an ever-changing world. Jen began working on this series in 2011 as an exploration of the dying bald cypress trees in the lower Cape Fear River basin due to saltwater intrusion from climate change. Over the years, the health of the river has become threatened due to saltwater intrusion and industrial chemicals, agricultural waste, and coal ash.
A year and a half into working on this project, news broke about the discovery that multiple toxic Perflourinated chemicals had been being dumped into the Cape Fear River for 40+ years, including GenX, PFOA, and PFOS by a DuPont/Chemours plant upriver. The chemicals have contaminated the drinking water supply, soil, and air in surrounding communities.
The images are an exploration of grief and awe in response to the climate crisis as well as personal losses that Jen has experienced. The images are a meditative bow to acceptance of what remains following loss and destruction and a sense of personal and collective agency to create change. When we embrace the blur of uncertainty, the way toward healing becomes clearer. It is Jen’s hope that the viewer feels both the loss and beauty of these dying trees and becomes inspired to preserve nature in local communities.
This project is made possible, in part, by a 2016-2017 Regional Artist Project Grant award from The Arts Council of Wilmington and New Hanover County.
Ghost Trees exhibit history:
Expo 216 | 216 N. Front St. | Wilmington, NC 28401 2017
Art in Bloom Gallery | Wilmington, NC. 2019
Awards
Art of the Image ’19. Art in Bloom Gallery and theArtWorks. Juror Beth Handler Riebe. First Place Award Winner for “The Answer Lies Within” from the Ghost Trees project.
Book Cover
“Fading Echoes” image from the Ghost Trees series is featured on the cover of Readiness by Mark Cox. Readiness is a beautiful book of meditative prose poems on the joys and struggles of being human.
