Visual Strolls
seasonal residency
Visual Strolls is a residency space for artists who share an affinity for landscapes and wilderness, inner and outer. Foresta is changing with every season as the real forest does. In cyclical circularity it celebrates changing seasons of nature and of our lives. As snow melts away, as days grow longer, as leaves change colour, as they fly with the wind, as stillness settles in, as warmth returns, as birds cross continents — at the turn of each seasonal moment we invite a different artist to bring a new time of the year to Foresta by creating a portrait of time that later becomes part of the permanent Museum of Seasons.
Summer 2023 Artist in Residence
Sana Habibi Rad
I am Sana. A children's book illustrator. My childhood was spent exploring my grandfather's gardens and fields, immersing myself in the world of my mother's embroidery and adventuring in my father's small library and illustrating his fictional stories. I fell in love with nature, storytelling, dreaming and creating; and issues such as humanity, friendship, caring for animals and the environment became an important part of my vision. So my images are mainly influenced by these interests. With each stitch, every print, every cut, I weave my love for nature into my art. And just like nature, I am free in the execution of my works. I pour my heart and soul into every creation, imbuing each piece with a piece of myself.
Summer 2023 Portrait
“I want to share a story with you, a love story. It’s the tale of a child’s wish coming true by blowing into a dandelion, the story of my love for nature and illustration.
It was a warm summer day, and the sun’s rays filtered through the thick canopy of trees, casting a golden glow on the woodland floor. With a dandelion in her tiny hand, Sana stood at the edge of her grandfather’s expansive gardens and fields, ready to embark on a day filled with wonder and exploration.
Sana took a deep breath, her rosy cheeks puffed up as she blew gently on the dandelion, watching the delicate seeds dance away on the breeze. She believed that with each whispered wish, a piece of magic was set free into the world. And oh, how she cherished the enchantment of her surroundings.
With her imagination as vast as the forest itself, Sana roamed through the vibrant gardens, admiring the riot of colors that bloomed around her. The sweet scent of wildflowers filled her senses, and she could almost hear the plants whispering secrets to one another. She would often pause to stroke the petals of the flowers, as if sharing a silent conversation with nature itself.
But the gardens were only the beginning of Sana’s adventures. She would soon find herself in her mother’s cozy sewing room, surrounded by delicate threads and shimmering fabrics. Her nimble fingers would trace the intricate patterns of her mother’s embroidery, immersing herself in the tales spun by each stitch. With every thread, she wove her own stories, dreaming of faraway lands and fantastical creatures.
Sana’s next stop was her father’s small library, a treasure trove of books and knowledge. The old shelves groaned under the weight of countless tales, awaiting her eager exploration. She would run her fingers along the spines, choosing books at random, and lose herself in the pages that transported her to different worlds. Armed with colored pencils and sheets of paper, she would sit on the creaky floor and bring her father’s fictional stories to life with her illustrations.
The forest, her grandfather’s gardens, her mother’s embroidery, and her father’s stories merged seamlessly, blending reality and fantasy into a tapestry of extraordinary experiences.
And in the last moments of that hot summer day, as she enjoyed the coolness of the sheets spread out on the balcony, Sana closed her eyes, lulled by the symphony of nature around her. She knew that her magical world would always be there, patiently waiting for her return, the next time she blew on a dandelion and made a wish.”
About Visual Strolls
Visual Strolls is not only an online gallery, an exhibition room, a portrait into the work of the invited artist. It is also a part of our long-term research, understanding arts and creativity as forces that change human states of attention in manifold ways, as forms of cognition and perception, divergent perspectives and poetry of vision, access to intuition and imagination, and empowerment for conscious creation of culture. You can read more about Art into Life research here.
Cover image: Sana Habibi Rad