© Milah van Zuilen, from 'Field Work'

Could you briefly introduce your educational background on what led you into visual arts?

Milah van Zuilen (MVZ): Before I enrolled at the art academy, I wasn't sure whether to study art or ecology. I came to the conclusion that I didn't want to choose one field and exclude the other and wanted to develop myself in both. For very practical reasons, I ended up at the academy; a time-intensive Bachelor in Ecology simply wouldn't have allowed me to also work on art-related projects. I started gaining knowledge about ecology as an autodidact, and my interest in nature began to surface in my artistic work from the very start.

How would you describe your practice and fieldwork?

MVZ: Fieldwork is the method I use to connect the disciplines of art and ecology. Whilst out on fieldwork, I gather plant material (leaves, mostly) according to self-imposed rules, and I seek similarities between scientific and artistic ways of looking at landscapes. The material gets transformed into squares and grids, referring to the shapes that characterize a very human perspective and presence. The square shapes and straight lines, paradoxically, emphasize the organic forms and patterns in the plant material.

View of the installation 'Betulla spp.' at TUO TUo art residency in Jotsua, Finland 2022.

Detail from the installation 'Betulla spp.' at TUO TUo art residency in Jotsua, Finland 2022. The bark from fallen or felled birch trees was collected, dried, peeled into layers, cut into little squares and arranged into grids.

View of the installation 'Betulla spp.' at TUO TUo art residency in Jotsua, Finland 2022.

What are the difficulties and advantages you find in balancing your interests in forest ecology and art?

MVZ: For me, my artistic practice really is the base. Everything I do and learn as a forest ecologist eventually serves to deepen my work as an artist. Also, the other way around, I believe there's much to gain moving in-between the fields. In forestry, plans are made for forests with trees that have lifespans way longer than ours, forests that will grow in climate conditions we can only speculate about. Imagination and creativity can also play a valuable role in these contexts.

© Milah van Zuilen, from 'Field Work' 

There's an ongoing "virage" in philosophy, anthropology, and science that pushes for an understanding of how nature and plants think in opposition to human primacy. This no longer reflects a need to develop environmentalist awareness or ecological policies but invites to downsize the all-human expectation of controlling the world, protecting it, planning it, and saving it. How do you relate to this open debate?

MVZ: The human urge to control, plan, or manage nature fascinates me. It can be conflicting to think about - this sense of 'ownership' and its destructive effects. In science, too, the human is placed in the center. Research about other organisms is often still based on their instrumental utility to human needs. In art, too, nature is considered 'material' that can be sculpted and used. Lately, I've been reading about the notion of Deep Ecology. This environmental philosophy proposes a readjustment of our relationships with other living beings, relating to all of them regardless of their usefulness to humanity.

© Milah van Zuilen, from 'Forestry (dot and boxes)'

Installation view of solo exhibition '10 Leaves' at Buitenplaats Kasteel Wijlre, The Netherlands 2022

The arts are often associated with closed, protected, exclusive places. Yet many practices and experiences open up to space, landscape, and nature. I like to recall the experience of Joseph Beuys, who led to the creation of 7000 Oaks, and his general militancy in defense of nature. Do you think art in Beuys's teaching can become a "social organism" to promote change? Or is it just a drop in the bucket?

MVZ: What I like about this work of Joseph Beuys is that it turns the act of tree planting into a poetic ritual, but at the same time, it really shines a light on the politics of forestry. Especially in urban settings, there are so many parties that want or deserve to have a say. I do think his projects can inspire change. Every thought and conversation has consequences - as well as every tree planted.

© DACS, 2022. In 1982, for Documenta 7, Beuys proposed a plan to plant 7000 oaks throughout the city of Kassel, each paired with a basalt stone. The 7000 stones were piled up on the lawn in front of the Museum Fridericianum with the idea that the pile would shrink every time a tree was planted. The project, seen locally as a gesture towards green urban renewal, took five years to complete and has spread to other cities around the world.(Tate Modern)

The program Blurring the Lines, which fosters new talents in art schools, awarded your series Field Work in the 2021 edition. What are the challenges students face when starting a career in the art world? Any tips?

MVZ: There aren't clear guidelines for freshly graduated art students, and I think the pressure is high to dive into each and every offer one gets. It might be a challenge for many young artists to say no to projects or offers they don't feel aligned with, while this could create more space to say yes to the things they really want to do. Bringing together artists with various backgrounds in a project like Blurring the Lines is wonderful. It sparks new ideas and gives a sense of community.

© Milah van Zuilen, from 'Field Work' 

© Milah van Zuilen, from 'Field Work' 

© Milah van Zuilen, from 'Field Work' 

You are also the co-founder of JARO, a space for art residencies in the Bohemian forests. What is this all about? What are the goals and outcomes of these processes? How does the program interface with local issues?

MVZ: JARO was founded to bring together local and international artists focusing on environmental science. We're based in the Czech Republic, in the old house of my late grandfather. Our team is renovating the old wooden barn for the residencies and screenings, small exhibitions, thematic lectures, discussions, and courses. In the area around our space, there are also local foresters and ecologists to whom we'd also like to offer space to stay during their fieldwork. With JARO, we aim to build a platform for all those parties to exchange methods and thoughts.

JARO Milíře is an artist-run space for ecology-related residencies and courses in the bohemian forest in the Czech Republic. Situated right at the edge of the Český les Protected Landscape Area1, the space aims to bring together thinkers, makers, and researchers with an interest in landscape- and place-based investigations.

Milah van Zuilen (website)