A sensory immersion in the pleasures and treasures of the arboretum
Sensing Nature has launched a new initiative this Autumn, called ‘Westonbirt Unseen’.
This is part of our collaborative ‘Re-Storying Landscapes for Social Inclusion’ project with Westonbirt Arboretum and Andy Shipley of Natural Inclusion.
The project team have been working together closely over the last few months to involve new blind and partially sighted volunteers as guides.
The Visually Impaired Guides will be taking participants on a sensory journey of the arboretum to discover the rich scents, sounds, textures and other sensations to be discovered amidst Westonbirt’s unique treescape.
Andy Shipley said, “As a visually impaired nature connection practitioner, I am interested in how greater use of our non-visual senses can affect the way that people experience the natural world. With this project, we aim to shift perceptions about the experiences of visually impaired people and demonstrate that there is much to be gained from exploring nature through another perspective”.
Two sensory walks a week will be available with our new VI guides in the autumn, where visitors will be immersed in the sensory delights of their surroundings. The guides have introduced themselves online so do have a read!
You will be able to book into a guided ‘Sensing Nature’ walk via Westonbirt’s website here: https://www.forestryengland.uk/westonbirt/sensing-nature-walks
**And coming soon**
In another strand of our Re-Storying Landscapes for Social Inclusion project, contemporary artist Zoe Partington is working with six fantastic Art Shape artists, who are ‘re-storying’ Westonbirt’s landscape through their own experiences. Their work will culminate in a Spring ‘Fragile with Attitude’ exhibition on site.
Zoe Partington explained, “In an ableist world, disabled people are often overlooked or marginalised into certain categories that can be disempowering. Our exhibition, ‘Fragile with attitude’, is about the stories and lives that are often misrepresented within our society. Westonbirt Arboretum provides a space for framing new perspectives of a ‘fragility’ in nature that impacts on us all”.
Through this project, we are working with Westonbirt to forge new creative and collaborative approaches to visitor experience and social inclusion, demonstrating how and why nature is for everyone.
