Trees & stories in boxes

One of 29 pieces of The Epoch Tree (Claudia Martinez)
"Umbrella," one of 29 boxes in The Epoch Tree project (Claudia Martinez)

An engaging new exhibit went on display at Migration Brewing, at 2828 NE Glisan, this month. Local artist Claudia Martinez says this about her artwork:

The Epoch Tree is a series of 29 hand-built boxes salvaged from trashed scrap wood left in a garbage bin outside of a cabinetry shop on Foster. These boxes contain 29 trees made of various types of wire. The trees are built in different sizes to represent various stages of one tree’s growth throughout the years.

Some trees are covered in snow, and some have shed their leaves. Every box has a cast of characters interacting with the tree in some way, and each character has a story to tell. The purpose of this art is to show that the smallest seed can create the largest impact—not just in the case of a tree, but in our interactions with each other, such as the seed of an idea, or the creation of life.

"Yoga," one of 29 artworks in The Epoch Tree Project (Claudia Martinez)
"Yoga" from The Epoch Tree at Migration Brewery (Claudia Martinez)

The Epoch Tree advocates awareness of the relationship between people and the nature around them.

Personally these trees represent each year of my life, and even after the show in May, I hope to keep that tradition going strong. My idea is to eventually install these pieces around the city of Portland with a web address attached to them. The web site will include photos of all of the trees as well as tell the stories of the characters that are part of the existence of the tree’s life.

–TR

Live Wire and the FOT hotties

Friends of Trees Haiku Hotties will collect haikus from the Live Wire audience on August 21. (Live Wire)
Friends of Trees Haiku Hotties will collect haikus from the Live Wire audience on August 21. (Live Wire)

Don’t miss the Friends of Trees Haiku Hotties at the live show of Live Wire on August 21 at The Gerding Theater at the Armory.

In addition to watching Friends of Trees collect the audience’s haikus, the evening will feature performances by musician Reggie Watts and experimental stage artist Dayna Hanson, with guest musicians 3 Leg Torso and Menomena.

Doors open at 7 p.m., and the show begins at 8 p.m. Buy a ticket in advance to hand your own haiku to a FOT hottie!

If you can’t come in person, be sure to listen to Live Wire at 8 p.m. on OPB–91.5 FM in the Portland metro area.

–TR

How rock band Cake plants a tree

(cakemusic.com)
Like many winners of trees at a Cake concert, this woman submitted a picture of the persimmon tree she won last year at a Dallas, Texas show to the rock band's Web site. (cakemusic.com)

The rock band Cake is currently on its national summer tour, playing such hits as ‘Never There’ and ‘Satan is my Motor,’ all the while giving trees to lucky audience members.

The popular band has been doing this for several years, according to front-man John McCrea at a concert in 2008, “Just because I think trees are pretty great.”

As the video below will show, the distribution process is not so structured.

Sometimes contestants are asked to have a dance-off, or in the video below, an informal tree quiz is administered.

Either way, all tree winners are responsible to plant the tree in a good home and submit pictures to their tree winner database.

If you missed other editions in the ‘How (so & so) plant a tree” series: How James Cameron plants a tree; How Katie Couric plants a tree; How a Palestinian prime minister plants a tree; How Disney stars plant trees; How an American gangster plants a tree; How Hollywood stars plant a tree; How President Obama plants a tree; How a prince plants a tree; and How an engineer plants a tree.

–Toshio Suzuki

Trees and the major motion picture industry

On the heels of the tree-centric Avatar and with the discovery that the Cannes International Film Festival will close this year with a picture called The Tree, it is increasingly clear that the film industry can not survive without trees.

The Tree is a family drama that incorporates a giant Moreton Bay Fig Tree into the set, both as visual aide and later as a portal for an 8-year-old to communicate to her lost father.

The film stars Charlotte Gainsbourg, is directed by Julie Bertucelli and will screen May 23 in France.

And now, thanks to The Guardian’s film blog, here are two clips that pay tribute to the history of trees in film, brought to you by Walt Disney and George Lucas, respectively.

What is your favorite major motion picture tree clip?

–Toshio Suzuki

How James Cameron plants a tree

(tonic.com)
James Cameron, second from left, plants a tree in Brazil earlier this month.(tonic.com)

James Cameron, director of the tree-centric Avatar, recently planted trees in Brazil and elsewhere in promotion of environmental concerns and the release of his record-breaking film to DVD and Blu-ray.

In Brazil, Cameron lobbied on behalf of indigenous tribes that live along the Amazon River and are opposed to the development of the $11 billion Belo Monte dam, according to the Associated Press.

Cameron and actress Sigourney Weaver planted a pau-brasil tree—a native species that is fighting extinction.

Cameron is visiting several countries and planting trees, all in congruence with Earth Day and the release of Avatar for home sales.

Avatar is a futuristic sci-fi film in which native peoples on another planet are threatened by inter-galactic (American?) developers.

Friends of Trees supports all native species tree-planting efforts—the Green Space Initiative program plants almost all native trees—and officially invites all Academy Award winning directors to any planting event.

If you missed other editions in the ‘How (so & so) plant a tree” series: How Katie Couric plants a tree; How a Palestinian prime minister plants a tree; How Disney stars plant trees; How an American gangster plants a tree; How Hollywood stars plant a tree; How President Obama plants a tree; How a prince plants a tree; and How an engineer plants a tree.

–Toshio Suzuki