Artward Bound's Field Guide to the Fens

Artward Bound

Table of Contents

Intro & About Artward Bound 2 Trees 4 Oriental Bittersweet Vine 18 Shrubs 19 Perenials 25 Animals 32 Frederick Law Olmsted 36 History of the Fens 37 Credits 39 References 40

Process We worked on making the field for 6 weeks during the winter and spring of 2012:

- Week 1: We learned about what is a field guide and what is Environmental Art, and that our project can be considered part of this category.

- Week 2: We learned about the Fens, and saw some Environmental Art in the Paine and Bakalar galleries.

- Week 3: We went to the Fens to sketch plants and animals we saw. We also picked plants we were interested in.

- Week 4: We worked on creating drawings for the field guide.

- Week 5: We worked on creating our pages for the book.

- Week 6: We worked on finishing our pages for the book.

We posted evidence of our process on a wall in the Garden Lab, an experimental for the 2012 spring semester in the Brant Gallery. The aim for the Garden Lab is to “create a garden space and platform where all students and the community-at-large can engage in an open conversation about art, design, food, community, and the environment. The project examines these topics and concerns in experimental and investigative ways, while proposing creative and sustainable solutions and possibilities.�

In addition to posting our progress in the Garden Lab, we used the space as a place to do research, draw, learn about environmental art, plant seeds, and watch them grow.

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Who We Are

Artward Bound is a fouryear college access program in the visual arts, designed for underserved, potential first generation students who live and go to school in Boston. Artward Bound helps prepare 8th – 12th grade students interested in the visual arts with the artistic and academic skills needed for admission to and success at an art/ design college or other post-secondary institution. Students enrolling in the program are expected to participate through their senior year in high school. Students in Artward Bound begin with a six-week summer session that includes intensive art and academic programs based on the campus of the Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MassArt). During the school year, students participate in art classes and other activities including visits to museums and studios, academic tutoring, and life skills workshops. Program activities primarily take place at MassArt, for the first two years, after which students may participate in other affiliated art programs throughout the city.

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TREES

Name: Red Oak Tree Latin name: Quercus rubra

Elijah S. Rheddick 4

TREES

This tree is the bare version of the red oak in the winter. Mainly abundant in the New England area, this tree can grow up to 15 -20 feet tall. It has a diameter of 2 to 4 feet long and can live for more than 300 years.

Its leaves can stay well into autumn and will feel like a leathery substance from a chemical compound. This tree grows quickly and produces important food for small animals.

The Red oak leaf has about seven to eleven lobes;later in the fall a dark red color appears before turning brown.

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TREES

Something interesting about this type of tree is that the sap can be used to make maple syrup, though it’s not as high quality as that of sugar maples. Its wood is used for inexpensive furniture, firewood and railroad ties.

By: Andy Vo

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TREES

Red Maple Known as Acer Rubrum in Latin, its common name is the Red Maple. It Belongs to the Kingdom Plantae, and can adapt to a wide range of the conditions more so than other trees in Eastern North America. It grows on poor dry soils, swamps and anywhere in between. Also known as Swamp, Water or Soft Maple. It can grow up to 15ft tall, has a trunk diameter of 18-30 inches and a spread up to 40 ft wide. Attaining maturity at 70 to 80 years, the Red Maple is a short to medium lived tree, which does not exceed 150 years.

(As you can see here, a dot shows where this tree can be located and be found.

Find your way to the red dot, to locate this Red Maple.)

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TREES

白色桦树

(White Birch tree)

Birch trees come in many shapes and sizes, but they do share some common characteristics. Generally, birch trees are medium-sized trees growing to between 40 and 50 feet in height with the leaves turning yellow in the fall. Where they tend to differ is in bark colour, growing conditions and disease resistance.

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TREES The flowers are monoecious, opening with or before the leaves and borne on three-flowered clusters in the axils of the scales of drooping or erect aments. Staminate aments are pendulous, clustered or solitary in the axils of the last leaves of the branch of the year or near the ends of the short lateral branchlets of the year . They form in early autumn and remain rigid during the winter.

(Chane Arthur)

ćžœ

(Birch Fruit)

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TREES

1885: Mrs. Eliza Ruhamah Scidmore returned to Washington from her first visit to Japan, and approached the U.S. Army Superintendent of the Office of Public Buildings and Grounds with the proposal that cherry trees be planted one day along the Potomac waterfront. It took many years, but eventually the trees were planted.

In Japan, cherry blossoms also symbolize clouds due to their nature of blooming en masse, besides being an enduring metaphor for the ephemeral nature of life.

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Each year, the National Cherry Blossom Festival commemorates the 1912 gift of 3,000 cherry trees from Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo to the city of Washington, DC. The gift and annual celebration honor the lasting friendship between the United States and Japan and the continued close relationship between the two countries.

Ciara Sanders

TREES Silhouette showing the form of the tree:

Cherry trees are close to the Emerald Necklace Conservancy’s visitors center.

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TREES

Honey Locust Gleditsia triacanthos

Gleditsia triacanthos •The Honeylocust can grow up to 66-100 ft •It produces an edible flat legume (pod) that matures in the early autumn, and can grow between 15-20cm •Honey Locusts are able to grow in compacted soil, alkaline soil, road salt, draught, heat, thus can survive the urban landscape •Though resistant to gypsy moths, it is vulnerable to the misosa webworm, spider mites, cankers and galls •Its name is derived from the sweet paste in the pulp, which was used for the Native American people, and can also be formented to make beer. However the pulp on the insides of the Black Locust pods are toxic •The life span is typically about 120 years, though some live up to 150 years

By: Cyndie Galvez 12

TREES

Honeylocust silhouette

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TREES

Linden Tree ( basswood) Tilia cordata

Almost every part on a Linden tree (besides the wood) can be eaten in some form or another. The leaves, when new and still growing, are actually a salad green. They have a nice fresh taste.

The flowers are slightly sweet and used for medicinal purposes in Europe. They can be made into tea, or you can just eat them “The fruits have an edible core, but it is a lot of work to get at it, so I have only tried it a few times. That said, were I desperate, there is usually an abundance of last year's fruits around the base of the tree in winter that could be gathered and stored.�

- Paul G. Harlen, Yahoo! Contributor Network , The Incredible (and Edible) Linden Tree

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By : Kassandra Colon

TREES

Latin name Malus sylvestris

Facts•the crab apple is a broadleaf •this tree is deciduous •the average height is 22.1feet •this tree grows a yellow–green fruit often flushed with red and/or white spots •its natural range is Brtiain, Ireland, UK, North America •this tree has green oval leafs that grow up to 2.4 inches •the crab apple also grows grouped flowers

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TREES Tulip tree Liriodendron Tulipifera

Facts: The tulip tree is often referred to as the white or yellow poplar. It is a type of magnolia; The tulip tree originated from Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee. Tulip trees can adapt to climates Lower than Subzero, Tulip trees can grow on landscape but give them plenty of growing area. Tulip trees don’t bloom until 15 years after they are planted and when they start to grow they can live until up to 300 Years. Tulip trees are the tallest broad leaf tree in the east United States and can grow to be as tall as 200 feet but most are 100-150 feet tall. Tulip trees are so tall because they are disease and Pest resistant.

- Isaiah Thistle 16

TREES

Hawthorn Crataegus spp.

Hawthorn has been used medicinally as a cardiac tonic used to help heart problems. Below is what the Hawthorne looks like in winter, but it is easy to identify because if its long thorns.

Ryan Rosado

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Vine

Oriental Bittersweet vine Celastrus orbiculatus

Oriental bittersweet is a decidious woody perennial which is in the staff tree family, and sometimes appears as a trailing shrub. It has rounded-leaves and stems sometimes grow up to 4 inches in diameter. It is an invasive plant. In the picure above, it has climbed to the top of a tree, and is killing the tree.

Jameel Jno-Baptiste

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Shrubs

Red Twig Dogwood Cornus sericea

Red Twig Dogwood grows up to 8 inches. It bears variegated leaves and white flowers that forms in flat clusters.

Flowers are surounded by beries that have a white collar. During the fall, foliage can turn rose or gold.

Jameel Jno-Baptiste

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Shrubs Andromeda Pieris japonica

Type: Broad leaf evergreen shrub.

Outstanding Features: clusters of white to pink flowers; foliage (es pecially new growth of some cultivars) Form: Upright mound.

Growth Rate: Slow.

Bloom: Clusters of white to pink to red lily-of-the-valley-like flowers in late winter to early spring.

Size: 6-12’ H x 6-10’ W. Light: Full sun to light shade.

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Shyimel Brown

Shrubs Early blooming evergreen shrubs are very special for year round interest in the garden and Pieris japonica is one of the best. Its large drooping clusters of small, waxy lily-of-the-valley-like flowers cover the bush in late winter or early spring when little else is blooming The color depends on the cultivar and can be white, pink, or red. Equally attractive is the new growth that can be bronze, pink or bright red, depending on the cultivar.

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Shrubs

Yew

Taxus Bacatta

Seed cones are 4-7 mm long partly surrounded by a soft, bright red berry-like structure called an aril, 8-15 mm long and wide and open at the end. Birds eat the seeds then disperse them in their droppings. The male cones are globose, 3-6 mm diameter, and shed their pollen in early spring.

Franklin Butahe 22

Shrubs

Summersweet Clethra alnifolia

Rachard Dale

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Shrubs

Witchhazel

Hamamelis viginiana

Cora Burwell 24

Perenials

The name “Crocus” comes from the Greek word “Krokos”.

A crocus is one of the first flowers to bloom.

It is small a cup-shaped flower with yellow stamens wich appear in late winter and early spring. Crocuses come in many colors such as yellow, white, purple, lavender or bi-color.

Paola De La Cruz

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Perenials

DAFFODIL: NARCISSUS

Thisflowerhassixpetalsarrangedintheshapeofastar withacentraltrumpetfacingout.Stemsofsingleflowersare30-50cm(12-20inches)long,multi-floweredstems areshorter.Daffodilsvaryinsizeandcolor.Thereareover 25,000typesofnarcissusinshadesofyellow,white,peachy pink, orange and bicolor.

MUREILLE JEAN 26

Perenials

DAY-LILY:HEMEROCALLIS The flowers open early in the morning and wither during the following night. They are possibly replaced by another flower stalk the next day. They have a crown,flowers,and roots.The long linear lanceolate leaves are grouped into opposite fans with arching leaves. The crown is the small white portion between the leaves and roots.

MUREILLE JEAN 27

Perenials

PHRAGMITES <3

“ an invasive plant thats sometimes cursed sometimes tolerated ,glows in the setting sun ‘‘ - Constance Casey, Landscape Architeture magazine, January 2012 - It is a large perennial grass found in the wet lands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world .

- It can grow in damp ground or water up to 1 metre ( 3ft 3in ) or even as a floating mat .

- phragmites grow in marshes all over the world

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By : Kassandra Colon

Perenials Japanese knotweed also known as the Fallopia japonica. It is an up right shrub-like plant. The stems are smooth, stout, and swollen at joints where the leaf meets the stem. The leaves are normally 6 inches long and 3-4 inches wide. The leaves are broadly oval to somewhat triangular and pointed at the tip.

The japanese knotweed first appeared around the late 1800â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. It is found in in several western states, and Alaska.

It can tolerate a variety of adverse conditions including full shade, high temperatures, high salinity, and drought.

It is an invasive plant that takes over areas that it grows in.

Yffka Lavaud

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Perenials

Burdock is any of a group of biennial thistles in the genus Arctium, family Asteraceae. Native to the Old World, several species have been widely introduced worldwide.

The roots of burdock, among other plants, are eaten by the larva of the Ghost Moth (Hepialus humuli). The plant is used as a food plant by other Lepidoptera including Brown-tail, Coleophora paripennella, Coleophora peribenanderi, the Gothic, Lime-speck Pug and Scalloped Hazel. People can eat the roots too.

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By: Angellize Rivera

Perenials

Allium canadense

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Animals

This is an example of a squirrelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nest. Their home is made up of bundles and bundles of twigs, and sticks. It is usually located in the highest part of the tree where it is protected from pretators.

There is a squirrel nest at the top of a tree that is covered in Oriental Bittersweet vines at the star on the map.

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Animals

Eastern Gray Squirrel T 9”; L 19 The eastern gray squirrel New England’s commanly seen mammal mostly found in mixed woods, and towns. The gray squirrel is active during day time all year round and lives off eating nuts, buds, inner bark, and fruit that falls from trees.Color: gray above, white below in the summer the the head, legs and the side are brown. Their tail is and bushy , with a blackish-white color. The eastern gray squirrel’s vocal s make a clucking with a chatter sound to communicate with other squirrels or to send signals

Antoine White

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Animals

The Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) is a medium-sized American sparrow.

The adults have brown upperparts with dark streaks on the back.

They are white underneath with dark streaking and a dark brown spot in the middle of the breast. They have a brown cap and a long brown rounded tail. Their face is grey with a streak through the eye.

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By: Angellize Rivera

Animals

â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) is a wild goose belonging to the genus Branta, which is native to arctic and temperate regions of North America, having a black head and neck, white patches on the face, and a brownish-gray bodyâ&#x20AC;?

Paola De La Cruz

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Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted Birthday: April 26, 1922 As a young man, Olmsted tried out many careers. He learned surveying, became a farmer, and an was an accountant. He could not find a profession that he liked.

He wrote a book after writing a lot of articles about how slavery is not only morally wrong, bur also ecomonically inefficient.

Olmsted went to Europe and loved the English Countryside and natural landscapes. During a dinner with someone, he found out about a competition to design central park. He entered the competition to design the layout of the 843 acres of Central Park with Architect Calvert Vaux. They won the competition. His profession as a Landscape Architect began.

Olmsted married his brotherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wife after his brother died. People all over America found out about Central Park, and many cities asked Olmsted if he could design a park for their city.

He started a landscape artchitecture firm attached to his home in Brookline. Eventually, his son took over the business. Now his home/ office is a National Historic Site.

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History This 1894 map shows the parks in the Emerald Necklace. It says: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Plan of portion of Park System form Common to Franklin Park including Charles River Basin, Charlesbank, Commonwealth Avenue, Back Bay Fens, Muddy River Improvement, Leverett Park, Jamaica Park, Arborway and Arnold Arboretum.â&#x20AC;?

This a 1937 map of the Back Bay Fens.

This aerial photograph of the Back Bay Fens shows how much of the water in the park has been taken over by the invasive wetland plant called Phragmites.

Photos courtesy of Alan Banks at the Olmsted National Historic Site

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History This picture shows the Museum of Fine Arts in the background behind the Kelleher Rose Garden. The Rose Garden was not in Olmstedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s original Design. It was added in 1930, when a more formal landscape style was popular.

Landscapes take time to grow! These two pictures are taken at the same place along the Muddy River.

The first picture shows the landscape right after the land was shaped to follow the design, and the second picture shows the landscape many years after the plants had time to grow. Olmsted preferred a winding river over a straight one because the twists and turns make people curious to see what is around the curve. A straight river wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be as interesting.

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Photos courtesy of Alan Banks at the Olmsted National Historic Site

Credits Field Guide Contributing Authors and Illustrators: Chane Arthur Shyimel Brown Cora Burwell Kassandra Colon Rachard Dale Paola De La Cruz Cyndie Galvez

Mureille Jean Jameel Jno-Baptiste Yffka Lavand Deneisha McDonald Ja’Hari Ortega Destiny Perez Elijah Rheddick

Angelize Rivera Ryan Rosado Ciara Sanders Isaiah Thistle Andy Vo Antoine White

Editors: Carolyn Lewenberg and Kangsen Feka Wakai Layout: Tiffany Gong and Carolyn Lewenberg Artward Bound Director: Tracey Boler Special thanks to: • Cecilia Mendez, Director, Center for Art and Community Partnerships, for generously supporting the printing of books, and for giving us access to the sparc!

Artmobile resources.

• Ekua Holmes, Community Coordinator, sparc! the ArtMobile, for scheduling workshops with us.

• Carlos Byron, Artist, for teaching us calligraphy and that “Art is not a pastime, it is a profession.”

• Spring 2012 Seminar I students, led by MassArt Assistant Professor Beth Balliro, for helping us focus our ideas and help us put them on paper.

• Alan Banks, Supervisory Park Ranger, Olmsted National Historic site for his wonderful presentation about Olmsted and the history of the Fens.

• India Clark, Curator of Education; Aimee DeBose, Assistant Professor; and Diana Clarke, Gallery Educator, for teaching us about Environmental Art in the MassArt Galleries.

• Jonathan Santos, Assistant Professor, for giving Artward Bound students the opportunity to be contributing artists in the Garden Lab. • Jeanie Knox, Director of External Affairs at the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, and their Green Team, for sharing information with us about the Fens and invasive plants.

• Paul Dobbs, Director and Greg Wallace, Public Services Librarian Reference and Instruction, for helping us find resources in the MassArt Library.

• Camilo Restrepo, for his help with photoshop.

• Lydia See for her beautiful photographs. www.lydiasee.com 39

References References: 1. White, J.J. and Bruno, L.B. (2009). Botanicals: Environmental Expressions in Art : the Alisa and Isaac M. Sutton Collection : Catalogue of an Exhibition 23 October 2009-29 January 2010. Pittsburgh, PA: Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, Carnegie Mellon University.

2. Martin, R., Thurstan, M., & Eden Project (St. Austell, E. (2008).

Botanical illustration course: With the Eden Project. London: Batsford.

3. Oxley, Valerie. (2008). Botanical illustration. Ramsbury, England: Crowood Press.

4. Krutch, J. W. (1965). Herbal. New York: Putnam.

5. Cassie, Brian and Alden, Peter. (1998). National Audubon Society Field Guide to New England. Knopf.

6. http://www.ehow.com/info_8070210_crocus-bloom. html#ixzz1qLqsefvU 7. Lots of wikipedia 8. http://www.beechwoodtrees.co.uk/index.php/ts_ground_ maintenance/2 9. http://voices.yahoo.com/the-incredible-edible-linden-tree-8534447. html

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Photo credit above, and photos on back cover: Lydia See Photography: www.lydiasee.com

Artward Bound Massachusetts College of Art and Design 621 Huntington Ave Boston, MA 02118 (617) 879-7167