Featured Artist

Under the Sun at Furnace Art on Paper Archive
As we embrace the fall, the trees colorfully dress themselves in their final attire before the winter, when their leaves gracefully return to the earth. This season of change, closing one chapter and opening another, is reflected in the current exhibition at Furnace Art on Paper Archive in Falls Village, CT.
This group of artists have chosen paper as their surface, manipulating it for their work. They employ various techniques such as printing, burning, marking, painting, dyeing, sewing, and drawing, all of which highlight the transformation of this humble material, pulped from trees, into a medium of artistic expression, thereby fostering a deeper connection with our environment.
On The Language of Trees
”The Language of Trees” is Leora Armstrong’s investigation into local topography and landscape, gathering found materials to employ as pigments and inks in her practice. These materials create a dialogue discussing the loss of trees bombarded with elemental and anthropogenic forces, particularly from invasive insect damage and weather-related events. This project is mapping tree loss to generate dialogue regarding these environmental losses through collaboration between the gathered objects and the artist.
Armstrong became focused on this issue when many Ash trees died due to the Emerald Borer Beetle; removing a beloved old tree and seeing the damage under the bark landed this issue on her doorstep. Walking in the local woods, filled with bare-limbed dead Ash trees, felt reminiscent of Dutch Elm Disease, which decimated the Elm worldwide, and similarly the Chestnut blight losses across the USA. Emerald Ash Borer’s invasion is currently killing approximately 8 million trees. The Eastern Hemlock loss from Hemlock Woolly Adelgid decimated 90% of the forests in the Northeast as well as the Southern Pine beetle working its way North. Currently, the Spotted Lantern Fly is making its way North from NYC. First noted by arborists in 2023, this attractive fly attacks orchard trees, vineyards, and many other forest trees. There is nothing to eradicate or stop this fly on its current path of destruction.
The loss of the Chestnut, the Elm, the Hemlock, the Pine, the Oak, and, most recently, the Ash is not just an ecological tragedy. These trees, with their acorns, nuts, and forage foods, were a part of the local fauna’s diet and the locale. Their disappearance breaks a link in the local ecology; each tree anchored natural ecosystems, human economies, and cultures. These trees are a loss to the environment and our shared heritage. And while climate change and wildfires grab the headlines, the invasion of these insect species is proving to be a far greater threat to forest biodiversity in the temperate world.
Furnace Art on Paper Archive is located at 107 Main Street, Falls Village, CT.
Under the Sun Hours: Saturday 11 am – 4 pm until October 5th, 2024
Featured artists:
Stephen Maine – www.stephenmaine.com | @stephen.maine
Kim Uchiyama – www.kimuchiyama.com | @kimuchiyama
Yvonne Estrada – www.yvonnestradastudio.com | @yvonnestrada.studio
Bill Schuck – www.billschuck.com | @billschuck99
Zachary Keeting – @zacharykeeting
Leora Armstrong – www.leoraarmstrong.com | @leoraarmstrongstudio
Rebecca Ward – @bluebellward
Photos courtesy of Leora Armstrong and Furnace Art on Paper Archive. Art below by Rebecca Ward (left) and Bill Schuck (right).