The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

Wood sculpture. © Mitch Fry

Oil paintings, photos and sculptures—like this one by Mitch Fry—are featured at the new gallery.

A walk in northern Arizona’s quiet woods is calming, but dark. That’s because with so many trees, the sunlight barely reaches the ground. 

But in Phoenix, at a new gallery in Old Town Scottsdale, the forest is backlit and bright — thanks to photos, stories and wood sculptures. The exhibit illuminates the story of Arizona’s forests — 4 million acres overgrown and prone to intense, damaging fires — and the efforts made to restore them to health.

Bringing Forests to Phoenix

The Nature Conservancy opened the Restoring Arizona’s Forests Gallery to bring the forest to people living in the Phoenix-metro area. Given the two-hour drive to get there, many may not have explored these spectacular landscapes before. 

Gallery highlights include:

• Oil paintings by acclaimed Arizona artist Ed Mell.
• Wood sculptures by Mitch Fry.
• Photos of Arizona’s ponderosa pine forests from the early 20^th century, showing a much more open habitat than the dense forests we see today.
• Photos of the White Mountain Stewardship Project, sharing how it helped save the town of Alpine when the intense Wallow Fire blew through in 2011. 

The exhibit also explores the important role of Arizona forests in the Phoenix watershed and explains the collaborative Four Forest Restoration Initiative, the largest forest thinning project ever with 300,000 acres treated over the next 10 years. Small diameter trees similar to the ones being thinned are even part of the gallery’s design, with dividing walls constructed from oriented strand board.

When & Where

You can explore Arizona’s forests in Phoenix until May 31, 2013 by visiting the Restoring Arizona’s Forest Gallery. It’s open everyday 10am – 5pm, and located at 7056 East Main Street, Suite 2, in Scottsdale.