Grounded Knowledge
Grounded Knowledge is inspired by the desire to link hands-on practice with literary and historical knowledge production. Workshops bring together local artists, farmers, herbalists, and chefs with students and scholars to explore connections between our Renaissance kitchen gardens and apple orchard and our rare book collection, including: agricultural treatises, gardening manuals, early modern literature, and early earth science writing. Upcoming workshops include a focus on: seed stories in global landscapes, women’s production of herbal remedies and medical knowledge, fermented fruits and cider making, and distillation: pigments, perfumes, and syrups.
Watersheds
Prof. Brian Yellen (Dept. of Earth Geographic and Climate Sciences) journeys back in time through the Amethyst Brook Conservation Area to reveal the dynamism of watersheds and how waterways ‘downstream’ shape the landscapes and ecosystems where we live. Joined by poets, fiction writers, geologists, geographers, visual artists, and musicians, this workshop explores the long-histories of human and non-human engagements with water and its transforming power in the arts, industry, natural world, and cultural imaginations.
Terroir
This 90-minute workshop invites participants to ask: how do we preserve terroir amid our changing climate conditions? Jointly led by the Center’s Artist in Residence, Andrea Caluori & evolutionary-ecologist, Dr. Elsa Petit (Stockbridge School of Agriculture, UMass), the workshop offers short readings, a hands-on cheese-making demonstration, and conversation about the traditions and practices that create terroir. Workshop enrollment is limited and pre-registration is required.
Preservation
A virtual workshop with local orchardist Matt Kaminsky, Gnarly Pippins & Dr. Marissa Nicosia, Cooking in the Archives, offers readings, historical recipes, and a lively conversation about the preservation of trees and their fruits. Participants will work with apples, venture into orchards past and present, and explore the archives that link the Renaissance world and our own. The syllabus is available here.
Bees
A virtual workshop with Jade Alicandro Mace, Milk & Honey Herbs and Dr. Haylie Swenson, Folger Shakespeare Library, offers readings, recipes, and a discussion about bees, hives, and honey production venturing across gardens, books, and art—past, presents, & future.
The syllabus is available here.