Community-Curated Trail SpuR
& StoryWalk
New Trailside Exhibition Celebrates All That Trees Provide
The Forest Exploration Center is pleased to announce its second annual co-exhibition along the Community-Curated Trail Spur, featuring painter Mary Patscot Rocha and photographer Patrick Zettel.
Created around the continuing theme All That Trees Provide, the exhibition invites visitors to pause and consider the many ways forests enrich our lives, from habitat, beauty, and ecological relationships to the wood, paper, and other forest products woven into everyday life. The Community-Curated Trail Spur celebrates Wisconsin’s forest heritage and our connection to the land through the visual arts, literature, and sciences.
Together, the artists approach the exhibition theme from a complementary perspective. Mary’s paintings are meditative and interpretive, while Patrick’s photographs tend toward the physical and observational. Their work encourages visitors to slow down, notice what is nearby, and reflect on their own relationship with the forest.
Come explore the artwork, read or listen to the artists’ reflections, and discover how Mary and Patrick found inspiration in all that trees provide. Through painting and photography, their work invites us to look more closely and reflect on the many ways trees support wildlife, provide useful materials, inspire creativity, and contribute to our health and well-being.
Mary’s acrylic gouache paintings on wood explore the forest understory through expressive interpretations of native plants, fungi, and ecological relationships, each become reflections on resilience, reciprocity, community, and care. Working with repurposed materials is an important part of Mary’s creative practice.
Patrick’s photographs offer a closer look at familiar objects and details that might otherwise go unnoticed, each reveal different ways trees continue to provide habitat, structure, materials, beauty, and inspiration.
NOW OPEN!
All that Trees Provide
the value of trees and forests in our everyday lives
We are excited to share this new trailside exhibition and Forest Storywalk with you!
We have completed installation of an accessible trail spur that is home to a very special Forest StoryWalk experience, where pages from a children’s book are installed along the outdoor path.
The trail also features Community-Curated Exhibitions under the theme “All that Trees Provide; the value of trees and forests in our everyday lives.” Community-curated exhibitions will rotate with StoryWalks seasonally.
Enjoy reading and exploring under the canopy of trees. Forestry and nature themed children’s books, poetry, art, science and activities will rotate seasonally through community-curated trailside exhibits that celebrate Wisconsin’s rich forest heritage through visual arts, science and literature.
Want to listen along the way?
Scan the QR code at the trailhead for narration at each stop along the trail.
Trail Spur Exhibition Submissions
We are not currently accepting submissions. Sign up for our newsletter for updates on our 2027 exhibition call.
The community-curated trail spur provides a unique opportunity for students, individuals, families, researchers, and collaborative groups to share their forest art, stories, research, photography and experiences through curated exhibitions along an accessible nature trail under a canopy of trees.
The purpose of the curated trail is to celebrate Wisconsin’s rich forest heritage and our human connection to the land through the visual arts, literature, and the sciences. We will showcase, through a diversity in style, imagery, materials, and techniques, the creativity and talent of those who draw their inspiration from Wisconsin’s forests and this region’s rich natural and cultural heritage.
The Selection Committee
The selection committee is comprised of FEC staff and stewards, members of the board of directors, Wisconsin DNR foresters, and community members with expertise in the arts and sciences.
The committee seeks works that complement the FEC’s mission, purpose, values and goals. Subject matter should focus on the theme All that Trees Provide, the value of trees and forests in our everyday lives. This may include forest ecology, forest products, or the plants and animals of this landscape that depend on the ongoing care and sustainable forest management of this special urban woodland. The committee also encourages submissions that consider health and wellbeing along with the social, emotional, economic, and environmental relationships between humans and forested landscapes.
Individual and collaborative submissions are welcomed. We also encourage student participation and would be happy to help facilitate student exhibitions and explorations in the forest. For group submissions please designate one person as the contact. Exhibitors are encouraged to have enough material for 12-14 exhibit frames or to partner with others to fill the space. Collaborations between material and media types are strongly encouraged. Proposals for freestanding temporary public art displays along the trail will also be considered.
Upon acceptance, the FEC will layout, print and install each exhibit piece on specialty papers. The printed exhibit papers will remain the property of the FEC.
We encourage a pre-submission meeting and are happy to talk with you to provide initial guidance and feedback on your proposal concept. Please send an inquiry with your exhibit concept to: community@forestexplorationcenter.org with the title "Community Trail Spur."
Submissions should include the following for consideration:
an artist/purpose statement for this exhibition (resume is optional)
a narrative explaining the focus, content, and inspiration of the exhibit to include how the
proposed exhibit aligns with and supports or compliments the Forest Exploration Center’s
purpose.6 to 8 images or samples of art, photography, or writing that accurately reflect the proposed exhibit.