Making black ink from wild mushrooms


Artists learning about the medicinal properties of
Ragweed from herbalist Amber Westfall

The Ayatana chef cleaning wild fruit to make jelly

Fairy ring mushrooms taste like maple syrup

Stinging Nettles for breakfast

Culturing wild yeast from Crabapples

Leaf galls for dye making

Foraging for iron to make a rust garden for ink and dye


Allyssa Ellis discovering a rare medicinal non-photosynthesising plant

Residents collecting sounds of wildlife


Residents with wool in a mushroom dye pot

Residents stirring tea at a biodynamic vineyard

Wild root beer fermenting

Foraging classes for Artists

8th - 19th of August 2022

Wildcraft is a two week webinar for artists interested in harvesting materials from the wild. The program will offer daily video lectures and chats with nine experienced foragers about their techniques for collecting and processing materials from nature. We will also hear from the seven artists in the class about their art practices. Built in to the 2 - 2.5 hours of daily programming are discussions, demonstrations, recommended assignments and show and tell. Participants are invited to also have short daily one-on-one meetings with our director and the other residents in the group.

The program will focus on finding meaning and magesty in materials and making relationships with the wildlife that surounds each of us.

Biophilium residencies are designed to facilitate research that will enrich visual and conceptual artists' practice within a group of like minded creative people. Artists, writers, musicians, film makers and dancers are invited to apply. The jury will select seven or eight international artists based on their portfolio rather than how they fit into any description of an artist.

Artist talk: We invite you to give a private artist talk to share your work with the group.

Make Ink - How to make ink from wild plants and urban detritus

Working with Invasives: How to forage responsibly with Lou from North Shore Apothecary

Mineral Pigments - How to extract pigments from minerals

Medicinal Plants - Foraging for wild remedies with Amber from the Wild Garden

Wild Fermentation - Making sodas, beer and wine from wild foraged ingredients using wild yeasts

Mushroom Hunting- Collecting wild mushrooms for food and color

Foraged Feast- How to identify edible plants and mushrooms

Urban Foraging- How to find food in the city

Wild Materials in Art- Talk on Contemporary art history, opportunities and resources

Roadkill Taxidermy and Bone Collecting demonstration

Cost 
$575 USD
Residency places are limited to 7 artists.

Only applications that follow these guidelines will be considered.