William (Bill) Lishman M.S.M., L,L,D. (hon) ( b. 1939 - 2017) Lishman was a world-renowned inventor and artist in many media. His works include award-winning documentary films, three books, and numerous works of public art, including a 26 meter tall sculpture for EXPO 86 in Vancouver, twenty figures for the Bridgepoint hospital in Toronto, and Canada’s largest salmon sculpture in Campbellton NB. His 1996 best selling autobiography inspired the Columbia Pictures Oscar nominated film, Fly Away Home, as well as the Jaques Perrin feature film The Winged Migration. Bill was a pioneer in ultra-light aviation and became the first human to lead birds in the air with an aircraft. Building on that he initiated the use of ultra-light aircraft in establishing new migration routes for precocial birds. In 2015 he published his third book, The Oak Ridges Moraine From Above and also completed a 13-meter tall stainless steel iceberg sculpture for the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa. In his later years, Bill's passion built on his pioneering work in domed earth integrated architecture and is a concept for a new form of communal living for extreme climates particularly to fit the need of the Indigenous peoples of Canada’s north. Bill received numerous awards including the Odyssey of the Mind's prestigious Creativity Award, The Canadian Meritorious Service Medal, the US National Wildlife Federation Conservation award, and two honorary doctorates. < All Artists William Lishman ABOUT SCULPTOR Artist Bio William (Bill) Lishman M.S.M., L,L,D. (hon) ( b. 1939 - 2017) Lishman was a world-renowned inventor and artist in many media. His works include award-winning documentary films, three books, and numerous works of public art, including a 26 meter tall sculpture for EXPO 86 in Vancouver, twenty figures for the Bridgepoint hospital in Toronto, and Canada’s largest salmon sculpture in Campbellton NB. His 1996 best selling autobiography inspired the Columbia Pictures Oscar nominated film, Fly Away Home, as well as the Jaques Perrin feature film The Winged Migration. Bill was a pioneer in ultra-light aviation and became the first human to lead birds in the air with an aircraft. Building on that he initiated the use of ultra-light aircraft in establishing new migration routes for precocial birds. In 2015 he published his third book, The Oak Ridges Moraine From Above and also completed a 13-meter tall stainless steel iceberg sculpture for the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa. In his later years, Bill's passion built on his pioneering work in domed earth integrated architecture and is a concept for a new form of communal living for extreme climates particularly to fit the need of the Indigenous peoples of Canada’s north. Bill received numerous awards including the Odyssey of the Mind's prestigious Creativity Award, The Canadian Meritorious Service Medal, the US National Wildlife Federation Conservation award, and two honorary doctorates. Article About Lishman Installed Sculptures Kennisis: Horse and Rider Previous Sculpture Next Sculpture

Youkie Stagg < Back Originally Published On: January 1, 2016 Originally Published By: Haliburton Echo Lissome #5 Written By: Youkie Stagg Work created by Andrew Rothfischer in 2014. Curvilinear shapes are repeated several times throughout nature, through water waves, grass blowing in the wind, to human silhouettes. For this reason, curvilinear shapes are seen throughout many pieces of artwork, and are more and more common within modern architecture. “Lissome #5” is one of a series of curvilinear pieces made of polished concrete and fused glass. One of the most beautiful aspects of “Lissome #5” is the way it is positioned is relation to the sun. The piece is set within the large boulders in front of the Haliburton School of Art + Design, and when the sun rises and sets, the sunlight shines through the glass within the piece and the piece appears to glow. “Lissome #5” embodies grace and flexibility which truly reflects its name. The Sculpture Forest offers free guided tours each Tuesday from 10-11:30 am and a shorter “Curator Selection” tour on Wednesday from 12:10 – 12:50. Meet at the kiosk in the Fleming College parking lot. < Previous Article Next Article >

Angus Sullivan < Back Originally Published On: August 29, 2017 Originally Published By: Haliburton Echo To Cut or Not to Cut Written By: Angus Sullivan To Cut or Not to Cut was created by John Beachli in 2006. There is only one sculpture in the Haliburton Sculpture Forest carved out of local granite. Granite from the Pre-Cambrian shield (actually called gneiss) is notoriously difficult to work with. It is hard on carving tools, and it has fault lines that might result in a fractured sculpture if not handled with care. A sculptor has to be patient, creative, careful, and experienced to work with it. The stone for “To Cut or Not to Cut” was blasted from the ground under where Todd’s Independent stands now on County Rd 21. Some sculptors believe that forms and figures exist within the stone, and that it is their job to allow these shapes to appear. This concept can be seen in Beachli’s sculpture. The natural red colouration of some parts of the rock inspired the red flannel shirt of the lumberjack and the faces of the figures. If you walk around the sculpture, you can see sections that were left uncarved, almost as if the artist found the boy and his father within the stone. Haliburton County has a long history of men working in the forest, whether in the logging industry or cutting trees to clear land for farming and fire wood. This sculpture details the scene of a father and son working together. “To Cut or Not to Cut” is about the conversations that take place between them as they work. It can also be interpreted as the push and pull relationship we have with the forest. We need timber for building and heat, but we also need to conserve the forest and our environment to protect the air we breathe and the water we drink. How do you know when to cut and when not to cut? The Haliburton Sculpture Forest is located in Glebe Park on 297 College Drive. This unique collection of 36 sculptures by Canadian and international artists is open to the public, dawn to dusk, for your own discovery. Free guided tours occur on Tuesdays (10:00-11:30) and Wednesdays (12:10-12:50) in July and August. You can use the sculpture forest app (download PocketSights and search for Haliburton) or visit the website to learn more about the sculptures. www.haliburtonsculptureforest.ca < Previous Article Next Article >

Starting off his career with a BA in geography and biology at Wilfrid Laurier University, in 2006, Scott later went back to school for blacksmithing at Haliburton School of Art + Design. Since then Scott's public commissioned work can be found all around Ontario including Windsor, St Thomas, and Thunder Bay, as well as a work commissioned by a Medical Research Conference. You are now most likely to find Scott at his studio in Iona Station, ON. There he owns and operates Strong Arm Forge Inc. Check out his website to see more of his art and sculptural works. < All Artists Scott McKay ABOUT SCULPTOR Artist Bio Starting off his career with a BA in geography and biology at Wilfrid Laurier University, in 2006, Scott later went back to school for blacksmithing at Haliburton School of Art + Design. Since then Scott's public commissioned work can be found all around Ontario including Windsor, St Thomas, and Thunder Bay, as well as a work commissioned by a Medical Research Conference. You are now most likely to find Scott at his studio in Iona Station, ON. There he owns and operates Strong Arm Forge Inc. Check out his website to see more of his art and sculptural works. Artist Website Installed Sculptures Sun Bench Mother Earth Forest Screen Bench Fire Bench Previous Sculpture Next Sculpture

Tucked into the forest lie three Art Huts with unique art installations within each. Discover Grey's paintings. < All Events Art Hut Installation: Inner: Don’t Peak Tucked into the forest lie three Art Huts with unique art installations within each. Discover Grey's paintings. Wednesday, March 1, 2023 Friday, August 25, 2023 Address: Haliburton Sculpture Forest, College Drive, Haliburton, ON, Canada More About the Installation Inner: Don’t Peak is a series of eight paintings that depict the artist’s physical manifestations of trauma and mental illness. The characters depicted in each of the eight paintings represent a different archetype: Baba , a humanoid-bird creature that represents generational trauma; The Neighbor , a feminine presence that represents self-harm; Suffocating Hugger , a figure draped in layered fabrics that represent depression; Double Trouble , androgynous-looking twins that represent anxiety and paranoia; The Three-Headed Who , a faceless figure with three-headsthat represent derealisation, depersonalization and dissociation; Daydreamer , a fae that represents maladaptive daydreaming; Shackled Distract , a long-bodied creature that represents executive dysfunction; Cursed Ones , transparent humanoid figures that represent dysphoria and gender-dysphoria. Grey intends to expand this series into a divination deck, depicting a wider range of mental illnesses, disorders and unhealthy coping mechanisms. Photo Gallery: < Previous Next >

Work Decommissioned in 2017 Phillip Vander Weg is a professor of Art at Western Michigan University. He has held that post since 1989 and has been chair of the Department of Art for most of that time Vander Weg is also director of the WMU Sculpture Tour Program, which he founded in 1991. He received his MFA in Sculpture from The University of Michigan’s Horace Rackham School of Graduate Studies in 1968. He also has a BS in Design from The University of Michigan. As an artist, Vander Weg has been exhibited regularly since 1969. Venues include Frederick Meijer Sculpture Park and Gardens in Grand Rapids, Cleveland State College, The University of Tennessee, Clemson University, and The Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art in Winston-Salem, N.C. Awards and honors include a Purchase Award at The 1996 Allegro Festival Exhibition, winner of The Vanderbilt University Sculpture Competition for Heard Library Interior in 1986, and a Purchase Award in the Art Of The Eighties competition at The Tennessee State Museum (Nashville) in 1982. Since 1972, he has had in excess of 25 private commissions (completed) of major sculptures for clients in the Midwest and Southeast, and his works are in the public and corporate collections of, among many others, The Butler Museum of Art, Tennessee State Museum, New York State University at Potsdam, and Gulf & Western Industries in New York City. He is an active member of The National Association of Schools of Art and Design, The College Art Association, FATE: Foundations in Art: Theory and Education, and The International Sculpture Conference. < All Artists Phillip Vander Weg ABOUT SCULPTOR Artist Bio Work Decommissioned in 2017 Phillip Vander Weg is a professor of Art at Western Michigan University. He has held that post since 1989 and has been chair of the Department of Art for most of that time Vander Weg is also director of the WMU Sculpture Tour Program, which he founded in 1991. He received his MFA in Sculpture from The University of Michigan’s Horace Rackham School of Graduate Studies in 1968. He also has a BS in Design from The University of Michigan. As an artist, Vander Weg has been exhibited regularly since 1969. Venues include Frederick Meijer Sculpture Park and Gardens in Grand Rapids, Cleveland State College, The University of Tennessee, Clemson University, and The Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art in Winston-Salem, N.C. Awards and honors include a Purchase Award at The 1996 Allegro Festival Exhibition, winner of The Vanderbilt University Sculpture Competition for Heard Library Interior in 1986, and a Purchase Award in the Art Of The Eighties competition at The Tennessee State Museum (Nashville) in 1982. Since 1972, he has had in excess of 25 private commissions (completed) of major sculptures for clients in the Midwest and Southeast, and his works are in the public and corporate collections of, among many others, The Butler Museum of Art, Tennessee State Museum, New York State University at Potsdam, and Gulf & Western Industries in New York City. He is an active member of The National Association of Schools of Art and Design, The College Art Association, FATE: Foundations in Art: Theory and Education, and The International Sculpture Conference. Installed Sculptures Previous Sculpture Next Sculpture

Youkie Stagg < Back Originally Published On: January 1, 2016 Originally Published By: Haliburton Echo Musical Inspiration Written By: Youkie Stagg “The musical instrument in this sculpture has a natural bond and connection to human life. Music entertains and educates us and speaks a universal language. The Dolomite lines represent the lyrics accompanying the music from the guitar. The lady is listening to the inspiring lyrics and music and it gives her happiness and peace. Music can do that.” – Simon Chidharara. Simon found the springstone used for “Musical Inspiration” in a mountain side quarry in Zimbabwe (where he lives) and was inspired to make this sculpture. He and his friends carried the rock down the mountain to his studio. The smooth sections of the piece were sanded with seven grades of sandpaper then the rock was heated to open up its pores and it was then polished with wax. The white lines were formed by cutting grooves into the stone and filling them with crushed dolomite. Chidharara is represented in Canada by ZimArt’s Rice Lake Gallery. The Sculpture Forest, located in Glebe Park, Haliburton, offers free guided tours each Tuesday from 10-11:30 am and a shorter “Curator Selection” tour on Wednesday from 12:10–12:50. Meet at the kiosk in the Fleming College parking lot. www.haliburtonsculptureforest.ca < Previous Article Next Article >

A dance event in three parts. < All Events Dance Rx³: Re-emergence, Re-engagement, & Re-connection A dance event in three parts. Tuesday, September 13, 2022 Saturday, October 22, 2022 Address: Haliburton Sculpture Forest, College Drive, Haliburton, ON, Canada About Dance RX3 A dance event in three parts: Re-emergence and Re-engagement in September 2021 and Re-connection in October 2022. This project was made possible via a collaboration between Dance Happens Here Haliburton (DH³), Throwdown Collective, and the Haliburton Sculpture Forest. From September 13-18 visitors had the chance to see dance artists Brian Solomon, Noriko Yamamoto, Phylicia Browne-Charles, Madeline Friel and Throwdown Collective (Mairéad Filgate, Brodie Stevenson and Irvin Chow) as they spent a week in solo creative dance residency in the Haliburton Sculpture Forest. These selected artists were invited to take an existing work or idea—perhaps halted by the pandemic—and to re-engage, re-configure, and adapt it to the outdoor environment, exploring it through a new lens. In Winter of 2022 (date TBD) the dancers and choreographers will get reconvene for a live event do discuss their work, sit in for a Q&A and possibly perform their work live (depending on pandemic restrictions). Toronto-based Throwdown Collective is an award-winning contemporary dance company that supports the collaborative creative pursuits of founders Zhenya Cerneacov, Mairéad Filgate and Brodie Stevenson. The Collective’s first three site-specific works, originally commissioned for Toronto's Dusk Dances Festival, went on to tour throughout Canada and beyond, including the 85th Anniversary Celebration of Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, MA and Fall for Dance North at the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts. Their first full-length evening of stage works, presented by DanceWorks (TO) received two Dora Mavor Moore Awards for Outstanding Choreography and a total of eight nominations. Throwdown Collective enjoys a long-standing relationship with Dance Happens Here Haliburton and the Haliburton community. They created two full-length works as artists-in-residence at the Sculpture Forest (2018, 2019), and a short film commissioned by DH3 during the COVID-19 lockdown. They are thrilled to be returning to Haliburton for another exciting project. Learn More About: The Dancers Throwdown Collective DH3 September 13-18, 2021 Re-emergence We asked the Throwdown Collective to invite four dancers/choreographers, Brian Solomon, Anishinaabe dance artist, Noriko Yamamoto, Japanese-Canadian mime/dance artist and two emerging dance artists Phylicia Browne-Charles and Madeline Friel to spend a week in solo creative dance residency in the Haliburton Sculpture Forest in September 2021. These selected artists have been invited to take an existing work or idea—perhaps halted by the pandemic—and to re-engage, re-configure, and adapt it to the outdoor environment, exploring it through a new lens. Coming a year and a half after most creative rehearsals and performances were halted, this creative time in Haliburton will offer artists an open week of personal reflection, re-emergence into creative life post-pandemic, and a gentle entry back into artistic social exchange. September 13-18, 2021 Re-engagement The dance artists will reside in Haliburton with seven days to think, create, and experiment, inspired by the beautiful forest surroundings, the changing colour of the leaves and the sculptures nestled along the trails. Community members and visitors are invited to wander through the Sculpture Forest and observe the artists in their process. The Sculpture Forest attracts a culturally diverse group of visitors of all ages from the GTA and throughout the region. It is also a favourite place to walk for local residents, within walking distance of three local schools and adjacent to the Haliburton School of Art + Design. A casual meet and greet for artists and community members will be organized at the end of the week, as well as informal events for participating artists to gather, socialize, and exchange ideas. The objective of the week is to offer artists a supportive and nurturing space and opportunity to re-ignite their creativity and spark artistic exchange after a tumultuous time. The focus is on process with no expectation of a final product. Throughout the week the process will be documented on film including short interviews with participating artists. October 22, 2022 Re-connection This film footage has been edited into a creative montage and will be screened at a culminating live event in Haliburton in Fall 2022. The participating artists are returning to Haliburton for the screening, to perform their work before a live audience and to participate in a artists talkback about their experience with re-emergence, re-engagement and re-connection! Watch the video here. Thank you to all our sponsors! This event is funded by the Goverment of Canada Photo Gallery: < Previous Next >

Sculpture Forest comes alive with performances, movement and music. < All Events Sculpture Forest Re-imagined 2018 Sculpture Forest comes alive with performances, movement and music. Monday, August 6, 2018 Tuesday, August 7, 2018 Address: Haliburton Sculpture Forest, College Drive, Haliburton, ON, Canada More About DH3 Sculpture Forest Re-imagined was a unique, walk-about experience featuring acclaimed contemporary dance company Throwdown Collective ; cellist Bethany Houghton; coronet player Hugh Taylor; storytelling, psychedelic, blues/rock trio Dark is our Danger; Heritage Ballet dancers; and more. Presented by DH3 (Dance Happens Here Haliburton) in collaboration with the Haliburton Sculpture Forest. DH3 is a part of the Haliburton County Community Co-operative “It’s a different way of experiencing the Sculpture Forest.” said Sculpture Forest curator and DH3 committee member, Jim Blake. “It is fun, thought provoking and eye-opening to see how these incredible performing artists respond to, interpret, animate and amplify the Sculpture Forest. Throwdown Collective are well known to Haliburton through their performances in Dusk Dances Haliburton over the years. This year they have returned to the community as artists in residence in the Sculpture Forest. We posed the question: “What would happen if the Sculpture Forest came alive with movement and music?” Throwdown Collective are working with local artists to explore that question and to co-create The Sculpture Forest Re-imagined. Photo Gallery: < Previous Next >

Youkie Stagg < Back Originally Published On: January 1, 2016 Originally Published By: Haliburton Echo Dreaming Stones Written By: Youkie Stagg Work created by Kevin Lockau in 2001. When the first settlers in Ontario tried to develop farms and agriculture they were struck with the major obstacle of the Canadian Shield. To successfully grow their food they had to remove large amounts of rock from the ground so that the soil would be deep enough. Lockau used these boulders leftover from the first settlers for the piece “Dreaming Stones.” The piece is a 2.75 meter tall totem made of 6 granite boulders from Ontario. At the bottom of the totem is a sleeping wolf or coyote, which shows the preservation of nature. Going up the totem you can see leaves representing regeneration, the faces of the first pioneers, deep grooves of glacial erosion and plowing of the land, concentric circles representing the passing of time, and lastly the owl representing the modern day and the wisdom that comes with it. The piece reflects the struggles of the first settlers as well as the changing relationship between mankind and nature. The Sculpture Forest offers free guided tours each Tuesday from 10-11:30 am and a shorter “Curator Selection” tour on Wednesday from 12:10 – 12:50. Meet at the kiosk in the Fleming College parking lot. < Previous Article Next Article >

To Do Canada Editorial Team < Back Originally Published On: September 17, 2022 Originally Published By: To Do Canada Hike Haliburton Highlands: 15 Hikes & Lookouts For Glorious Fall Colours Written By: To Do Canada Editorial Team Hike Haliburton Highlands to experience the stunning colours of the autumn season in Ontario. Popularly known as Haliburton Highlands , the county of Haliburton, comprised of Algonquin Highlands, Dysart et al, Highlands East and Minden Hills, is an extremely popular destination to enjoy the fall season with tree canopy ranging from deep green to soft hues of yellow and gold to bright reds depending on the time and place (type of trees present) of your visit. While hot warm summers will lead to fall colours appearing later in the season (well into October), cooler summers will see fall colours peaking much before Thanksgiving weekend. The fall colours that you see will also vary depending on the tree. Maple trees turn auburn because their leaves are rich in anthocyanins, a compound responsible for the glorious hues of red colour. Poplar, Birch and Tamarack (larch) trees have carotenoids and xanthophylls which results in hues of yellow, gold and orange leaf colours. Fall in Love With Maple: Taste & Hike Through Brilliant Colours of Fall at Ontario Maple Farms Around the fourth weekend of September, Haliburton tourism organizes a hiking festival (2022 – September 22 to 25). Hike Haliburton Festival is Canada’s largest hiking festival and includes guided hikes, and various Fall themed experiences. While you have to register for the guided hikes , you can always head to Haliburton anytime from mid-September to late October/early November to enjoy nature during the Fall season. Appreciate stunning masterpieces surrounded by brilliant colours of Fall at Haliburton Sculpture Forest. Read the Original Article Here: https://www.todocanada.ca/hike-haliburton-highlands-15-hikes-lookouts-for-glorious-fall-colours/ < Previous Article Next Article >

Angus Sullivan < Back Originally Published On: August 1, 2017 Originally Published By: Haliburton Echo Homesteaders Written By: Angus Sullivan Work created by Jake Mol in 2004. As a local resident, it is easy to forget about the number of interesting places there are to explore in Haliburton County. When you enter Glebe Park, from the parking lot of the Haliburton School of Art + Design, you quickly realize that this is one of those places. On any day of the summer you will see people bustling in and out of the College with tools, art supplies and work in progress; there will be families gathered at the information kiosk looking at the maps of the park and Sculpture Forest. As you walk into the park you will see dog-walkers, joggers, and multi-generational groups exploring the Haliburton Highlands Museum’s 1870’s era farmstead and heading on the path toward the entrance of the Haliburton Sculpture Forest. The first sculpture you will see is “The Homesteaders.” A whimsical portrayal of a family (mother, father, son, and dog) created out of old telephone poles and an eclectic mix of tools, hardware and farm equipment. The mother and father are “holding” paintings of the farmstead. You have to wonder what this family is doing there. For that, you have to look into the mind of the sculptor, Jake Mol. Jake Mol, a long-time member of the Canadian Society of Painters in Watercolour, has his art in many collections around the world such as his charcoal portrait of Chief Joseph at the Crazy Horse Museum of South Dakota. For many years, Jake Mol was an instructor at the College and took his en plein air (outdoor painting) students to paint the historic farmstead. As the Sculpture Forest began to grow, Jake wanted to do something to connect it to the farmstead. This led to the creation of “The Homesteaders”. The family, representing the people who might have lived in the farmstead, are made out of materials they would have used to make a life for themselves in the tough Haliburton landscape. They proudly hold up portraits (painted by Jake) of their home. It makes one pause to think about what objects would be used to portray today’s residents of Haliburton. The Haliburton Sculpture Forest is located in Glebe Park on 297 College Drive. This unique collection of 36 sculptures by Canadian and international artists is open to the public, dawn to dusk, for your own discovery. Free guided tours occur on Tuesdays (10:00-11:00) and Wednesdays (12:10-12:50) in July and August. You can use the sculpture forest app (download PocketSights and search for Haliburton) or visit the website to learn more about the sculptures. www.haliburtonsculptureforest.ca < Previous Article Next Article >