Tree Talks: Populus Tremuloides (Summer)
Location: Kenosha Pass, Colorado, USA
Date: August 5, 2022
Time: 11:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. MT

The final of four seasonal talks organized by artist Ben Kinsley focused on understanding the Quaking Aspen tree. The Summer talk features lectures by guest speakers Iddo Aharony, Brandon Vogt, and Gregory Ragland.

Populus tremuloides (Summer Series)

AUGUST 5, 2022
Kenosha Pass, Colorado

Iddo Aharony is a composer and sound-artist whose diverse body of work spans a wide variety of instrumentations, media, and interdisciplinary collaborations. In his work, he is interested in exploring the myriad intersections of sound, environment, culture, and technology. His music incorporates sounds from acoustic instruments, field recordings of natural and urban environments, found objects, and synthesis, along with real-time interactive electronic processing of these sounds. He received a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago and is currently an Assistant Professor of Music Technology at Colorado College.

Populus tremuloides: Iddo Aharony

Performance of "cycles.scales.webs.dreams" by Iddo Aharony.

AUGUST 5, 2022
Kenosha Pass, Colorado

Iddo Aharony is a composer and sound-artist whose diverse body of work spans a wide variety of instrumentations, media, and interdisciplinary collaborations. In his work, he is interested in exploring the myriad intersections of sound, environment, culture, and technology. His music incorporates sounds from acoustic instruments, field recordings of natural and urban environments, found objects, and synthesis, along with real-time interactive electronic processing of these sounds. He received a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago and is currently an Assistant Professor of Music Technology at Colorado College.

Populus tremuloides: Iddo Aharony (cycles.scales.webs.dreams)

AUGUST 5, 2022
Kenosha Pass, Colorado

Gregory Ragland is an Associate Professor of integrative biology at the University of Colorado, Denver. He studies how various critters, mainly insects, respond and evolve in response to changing environments. Burning questions include how bugs achieve suspended animation during hibernation, how they know when to ‘wake up’, and how arctic and alpine bugs stay in their happy place at extremely low temperatures. His work has included collaborations with agencies in the US, Austria, and Greece to better understand emerging crop pests and outbreaks of forest pests. When not out chasing critters, Greg thinks about how best to support students studying in the sciences through experiential learning and enhancing sense of identity and belonging in the classroom.

Populus tremuloides: Greg Ragland

AUGUST 5, 2022
Kenosha Pass, Colorado

Brandon Vogt is an Associate Professor and Graduate Director in the Department of Geography & Environmental Studies at University of Colorado Colorado Springs. Within physical geography, Dr. Vogt’s research focuses on understanding the ways in which land surface texture interacts with earth surface and atmospheric processes. Mountain weather and microclimate drive his passion in this area. His current research focus seeks to unravel some of the nuances of lightning’s interaction with topography. Dr. Vogt teaches courses in physical geography, geomorphology, meteorology, microclimate, a capstone snow and ice course in Silverton, Colorado, and co-teaches a course that explores how sound informs landscape. He emphasizes experiential learning and other high-impact educational practices and is especially proud of the ways in which he extends art into science.

Populus tremuloides: Brandon Vogt

"Tree Talks" is an ongoing project by artist Ben Kinsley focused on understanding trees from a multitude of perspectives, one species at a time. 

The inaugural series "Populus Tremuloides" focused on quaking aspen, the most widely distributed tree in North America. Once per season, from October 2021–August 2022, the public was invited to gather within a grove of quaking aspen at Kenosha Pass, Colorado to hear lectures by experts from diverse fields—ranging from ecologists to poets—who each shared their knowledge of the tree. The sounds of these gatherings were recorded using a variety of microphones to capture human voices, scientific information, poetic and metaphysical ideas, and the sounds of the aspen and other flora and fauna of the landscape. 

The full talks are provided here. 

"Tree Talks: Populus Tremuloides" was produced by Black Cube Nomadic Art Museum and culminated in the release of a limited edition lathe cut vinyl record and publication. The record is available for purchase via the Black Cube shop (link below).