The Scollay Square Gallery

LEARNING WITH TREES

Curated by Martina Tanga

Bruce Myren, Joel Janowitz, just practice (Amanda Ugorji and Sophie Weston Chien)

Between every two pine trees, there is a door leading to a new way of life.

– John Muir

Trees are living beings, revered by cultures across space and time. Artists have long recognized the power of trees, weaving them into cultural, religious, and spiritual narratives over millennia. At this pivotal moment in human history and planetary sustainability, artists help illuminate what trees can teach us about survival, connection, and time—and remind us of the fundamental role they play in sustaining life on Earth and human health.

Showcased in two locations—Boston City Hall and HallSpace in Dorchester—this exhibition presents the work of fourteen New England-based artists who center trees as collaborators and teachers in their practice. Here in City Hall, photographer Bruce Myren, painter Joel Janowitz, and the collaborative Just Practice (Amanda Ugorji and Sophie Weston Chien) consider the urban tree canopy and how the trees among our cities are rooted, living neighbors. They invite us to explore the relationship between our local built space and the trees that inhabit it.

Bruce Myren is a photographic artist residing in Cambridge, whose work explores the intersection of history and the American landscape. They hold a BFA in Photography from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design and an MFA in Studio Art from the University of Connecticut, Storrs. In their practice, Myren utilizes a large-format 8x10 camera as a tool for "slow looking" to document an experience of space and time. Bridging these worlds, they use a hybrid workflow that joins the traditional materiality of film with modern digital printing and high-resolution video and sound. 

Joel Janowitz is a painter that addresses his curiosity about the emotive and psychological potentials of pictorial space. Presented here are a selection of paintings depicting street trees surrounded by lumber and vast yardage of orange plastic fencing while construction in Cambridge takes place. The subject matter reveals itself as an inviting and disturbing metaphor for our flawed relationship to the environment. Janowitz holds a B.A. in Psychology from Brandeis University and an MFA in Painting from the University of California.

just practice, a collaborative started by Amanda Ugorji and Sophie Weston Chien, spans architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning, community engagement, textile, and graphic design, as well as activist and organizing work within the design field. They think about modes of engagement, the spatialization of memory, Black feminist practices, the historical role of women in architecture, and strategies for collective care. 

This exhibition is curated by Martina Tanga, Independent Curator, in collaboration with Tree Boston, an organization that works with Boston residents to build and strengthen community through tree planting and preservation, education, and advocacy in environmentally marginalized neighborhoods of the city. To learn more please visit treeboston.org

To inquire about an artwork please email mariana.rodriguezrey@boston.gov.