The title Cathedral is a reference to my reverence of the forest as a place of spiritual connection. Peter Timmerman suggests the image of our earth as seen from space can be “a focal point for dreams”. (Timmerman, 1999) And so may it be with a tree– an arboreal focus for meditation. Timmerman writes, “the most radical act possible is to sit in a quiet place for an hour attempting to clear your mind.” I would like to add dancing with trees to that most radical of acts list. I suggest that these simple radical relational acts have potential to ignite significant positive change. These practices may de-centre anthropocentric thinking and gesture towards non-hierarchical opportunities for imaginative liminal thinking that may lead us towards more equitable futures. With Cathedral, I was interested in using digital technology to visually express the feeling of forest moving through my body, not my body moving through the forest. I was interested in inquiring into the feeling that the trees and forests with whom I have moved are a part of me.

Date of Filming: January 2022-April 2023

Location: Various Locations Ontario and B.C.

Credits: 

Danced by Julia Aplin with Forest Cathedrals in Ontario and B.C.

Music O Viridissima Virga by Hildegard Von Bingham, performed by Jessica deKort

Sound Design by John Gzowski

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Timmerman, P. (1999, Winter). A Summing Up: Earth in our Hands. Probe Post. 26-21