Fens & Friends is a series of workshops about art and ecology, that combines walks with scientists and ecologists with hands-on art projects using natural materials. The common reed (Phragmites australis) is an introduced species that grows prolifically in the wetlands around Wassaic. Peruvian artist Alejandra Ortiz de Zevallos has been working with this material for several years, and will teach us how to harvest and create experimental woven structures with it. Dr. Stuart Findlay of the Cary Institute for Ecological Studies will lead a walk along the Harlem Valley Rail Trail and share research and knowledge about aquatic plants and wetland ecology.

This series is organized by the artist Christy Gast with support from the New York State Council on the Arts.