Art Farm

Having a space to combine our love of art, music, growing food, food justice, education,  and self-sufficient living has been our goal since Scott and I met.  And I'm thrilled to announce that after nearly 20 years together- dreaming, scheming, traveling, researching, experimenting, and practicing- our farm found us.  
We've traveled the country many times over, and although we could continue being in awe of every nook and cranny, we finally have allowed the pacific northwest to take root.    Not long after, an opportunity arrived in the form of a 30 acre farm in dire need of love and repair.  
Not ones to shy away from hard work, we have acquired this 30 acre parcel that is rich with diversity, with wetland areas, forested areas, de-forested areas, beautiful fields that had been an organic incubator farm in the past, and buildings that need to be removed.  It has been abandoned for nearly 7 years, is overgrown, logged, brambly, and beautiful.  We have so much work to do!    
Our goal is to create the art farm we've been incubating all these years, including: food production, art studios, music studio, plant dye garden, bee hives ( to produce most of the materials for the batik process), native land restoration, wetland conservation areas, sustainable building projects with renewable energy sources, and then to open it up to the public for workshops, classes, residencies and one festival each year.  
We are spending these first few seasons getting to know the land and the way it changes and dances with the weather.  We've been removing brambles and repairing a cabin that will be habitable.  We will be doing a couple of fundraisers in order to raise some funds to really get moving.  Our goal is to have it up and running in 5 years.  
If you'd like to be involved, or make a donation of any kind (be it equipment, connections, knowledge or dollars!) you can contact us.  Soon enough there will be a link to a site where you can donate.  
We are grateful for everything and everyone that we've met on this journey, and so excited for this next adventure!  
GROWING COMMUNITY
In late 2014, in the midst of what seemed a rash of violence across the nation, I read an article about yet another young man.  This story was different and for many reasons affected me deeply, Growing Community was my response. 

I opened the article about young George Carter expecting another brief blurb about the death of a boy somewhere in the country, roughly the same age as my son, that would leave me angry and frustrated, yet oddly removed.  What I read instead was about a young man who had believed and achieved so much, fighting for something that was close to my heart.  He had already figured out the not so secret (but somewhat elusive to school age kids) healing power of plants, of working with the earth, of growing food, and feeding our community.  And he had taken that knowledge and understanding and put it into action, advocating for school gardens not just as a way to diffuse anger, but also as a way to significantly increase productivity and decrease drop-out rates.   "To me, I think all schools should have gardens," he said in the documentary. "I like to go out in the garden because it can calm you down. If you just had a fight, you can just go in the garden, calm down ... and you feel safe because you'll be around nature. And nature, it won't hurt you."
Maybe it struck such a chord because he was the same age as my own son, living in a city that I loved, or maybe because he spoke of truths that rang so deeply in my life that I had been advocating for, maybe it was partly my mama-heart that broke for his family.   Yes, it was a combination of all those things that left me so deeply touched and saddened and angry. So I did what I always do when feeling that way, what George recommended.  I went to the garden, where I was taught by generations before in an unspoken language, how to let the earth diffuse emotions.  And then I went to the studio.  
I created “Growing Community” with George and all of today’s youth in mind, bringing to life the miracle idea that one seed planted can grow into a whole plant, fruit, and feed us - and one idea planted and nurtured can fruit and be shared.  The boy in the piece has in his hand a small tree that represents the idea the Freedom Farmers and grassroots education programs like it are nurturing- that kids being part of their community and food production is empowering - it can heal deep wounds and bring communities together. We must nurture and help these programs grow into full fledged forests that will provide shelter and change the landscape of education into one that is healing and inclusive.   The pattern in the background is loosely based off the ancient buddhist symbol Dharmachakra - the Wheel of Time - and represents many things including the cycle of food production and the practice of creating/growing positive energy that enhances life.