IF I WERE A TREE with Joan Sullivan (Regional Artist: ESSB)

This climate change workshop is inspired by a quote from the American photographer, Dorothea Lange: “A
camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera.” The first day of this two-day workshop takes place
in-class, during which students will describe in words and in images how a tree “feels” from the effects of
climate change – drought, heatwaves, flooding, less snow, etc. On the second day, we go outdoors to
“become” trees by listening to the tree’s heartbeat with a stethoscope, imagining what the tree hears, sees and
feels, and only then, to take photographs of the environment from the tree’s perspective.

Themes: Other than Arts, the workshop incorporates elements of STEAM.

Materials: Paper, colored pencils and/or markers, mobile device with a camera

Grade Levels: Secondary Grades 7-11

Artist Profile: Joan Sullivan

Email: joansullivan@gmail.com

Phone: (418)318-3688