Eileen Dorsey is on a mission. For someone who has spent the last ten years painting trees, it is perhaps not surprising that she is also planting, caring for, and advocating for them. When the Cleveland Botanical Garden reached out to ask the artist to show some of her work, Dorsey decided to use this platform to bring notice to a problem close to her heart. The tree canopy in Cleveland is struggling. Once it was around 96 percent, but now it has dwindled down to only eighteen percent. A startling statistic, and one that inspired the artist to get out and do something about it.

Dorsey joined the Old Brooklyn Tree Steward Program, a group that advocates for increasing the tree canopy in their neighborhood. They act as connectors for residents to tree-care resources and offer workshops. To learn how to plant and care for trees in the city, Dorsey took the Sherwick Tree Steward Training Program at the Western Reserve Land Conservancy—and now she is out in her neighborhood watering trees in the sweltering heat, helping her neighbors plant the right tree in the right location, and doing her part to improve the tree canopy.

Anyone who has endured the sweltering temperatures lately knows how vital it is to have tree cover. Amanda Wood, an urban community forester at the Holden Arboretum, explains: “Having a healthy tree canopy cover allows the city and residents to not feel the effects of climate change as much. People will save money on electric bills, will feel cooler when going out, and protect vulnerable populations from heat illness and asthma. Along with that, there are the health benefits of reducing stress levels, improving mental health, and other impactful health benefits.”

Dorsey’s paintings on view at the Botanical Garden all depict locations in and around Cleveland, but are either in a Metropark or the Cuyahoga Valley National Park (the only locations where dense tree canopies exist in our area). When you look at these paintings, despite the unrealistic electric colors, if you spend a lot of time in our Metroparks you immediately recognize them as local trees. These are our protected forests, but if we don’t start looking after the trees in our own neighborhoods, who will?

Join Holden Forests & Gardens’ People for Trees™ initiative by pledging to plant a tree, and helping to reach the goal of 15,000 trees planted by 2025. Visit holdenfg.org/make-an-impact/people-for-trees.

EILEEN DORSEY STUDIO
1305 West 80th Street, Suite 105
Cleveland, Ohio 44102
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EVENTS:

The Neglect of the Urban Canopy, September 13–October 27. Opening reception Sunday, September 15 at the Cleveland Botanical Garden, 11030 East Boulevard, Cleveland 44106.