“Twisted Branches, pyrography on birch plywood,’’ in Brett S. Poza’s show “Plywood Forest,’’ at Kingston Gallery, Boston, through July 31.
Brett S. Poza’s show displays more than twenty small works depicting trees burned into the surface of plywood and repurposed woodblocks like tattoos. Poza’s focus is on the trees we ignore or discard — stationary witnesses to change over generations. Her trees are examples of adaptation in the face of climate change, unsuitable settings or disease. She says: “I draw trees, not perfect trees, nor particularly healthy trees. Instead, these are trees that represent resilience, steadfastness, and the persistence to keep growing despite isolation, invasion by other species or inclement weather.’’
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During the past year, Brett relocated to Ashburnham, in North Central Massachusetts, with her family. This, her bio says, affords her “the opportunity to be in close contact with the area’s abundant wildlife, lakes and forests. She currently spends her evenings trying to figure out how to keep local predators from getting into her chicken coop and acting as a taxi service for flying squirrels, who show up in her attic.’’
In Ashburnham, on top of 1,832-foot-high Mt. Watatic, a monadnock just south of the Massachusetts–New Hampshire border
Print of Ashburnham map from 1886 by L.R. Burleigh with list of landmarks
