As part of its 2025-26 season, the Weis Center will host a series of programs including performances, creative projects, walks and lectures centered on the theme of trees. Join us!
Interdisciplinary artist, designer, and woodworker Gina Siepel spent 6 years studying a single tree in its forested habitat. Bridging art, ecology, and the queer experience, the project rethinks wood as material and living being, challenging binaries and inviting reflection on forest interconnection, environmental responsibility, and the power of community.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Dr. Chris Martine, Biology, will talk about plant reproduction, the basic idea being that people, to avoid the mess of fruits, have planted more male trees, which has meant more pollen. But the story isn’t as simple (nor accurate).
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Greenhouse Caretaker, Tasha Hall, will share recipes for floral essences of trees and their effects on the physical and emotional body.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Business Manager at Dries Orchard in Sunbury, John Bzdil will lead a conversation about maintaining orchards, from apple varieties to the challenge of finding field workers.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Pianist and composer Andre Mehmari’s trio blends Brazilian roots with jazz and classical influences in a new nature-inspired repertoire shaped by his life in the Atlantic Forest. Tickets: Bucknell.edu/BoxOffice or 570-577-1000
Weis Center Atrium
Bucknell L&IT Staff member Wade Hutchison will discuss the craft of woodworking and will demonstrate spoon carving.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Join the Samek Art Museum for an engaging interview as Margaret Cronin from Bucknell University speaks with Gina Siepel, the artist behind the To Understand A Tree exhibition. They will explore the ancient relationship between humans, trees, and forests, discussing how this connection can be deepened and transformed in today’s era. A reception will follow.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
National Geographic Explorer at Large Nalini Nadkarni interweaves her research on rainforest canopy habitat with dazzling imagery. Tickets: Bucknell.edu/BoxOffice or 570-577-1000
Weis Center
Local folk historian and storyteller Fiona Powell will recount ancient Celtic tree stories.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Prof. Claire Campbell, History, will discuss the history of the local timber industry.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
John Lantz, luthier at JR Violins, discusses types of woods used in instrument building.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Kurbasy channels contemporary connections to folk songs and lullabies of the past with its time-bending “Songs of the Ukrainian Forest” in a multimedia performance. Tickets: Bucknell.edu/BoxOffice or 570-577-1000
Weis Center
Nrityagram was founded as a school devoted to Indian dance. They will perform KHAṄKHAṆĀ: The Sound of Dancing Feet with live music. Tickets: Bucknell.edu/BoxOffice or 570-577-1000
Weis Center
Michael Palko, former PA forester, will talk about his experience using trees as a fuel source in schools and hospitals and forest regeneration.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Bucknell Film Club presents their 24-Hour Film Challenge at the Campus Theatre! After receiving their tree-related prompt, each group has 24 hours to plan, film, and edit a short film.
Campus Theatre, Downtown Lewisburg
Dr. Tyler Yamin, Music, will share findings from his doctoral work which focused on the sounds of gibbons in the forests of Borneo.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Dr. John Penniman, Religious Studies, will explore the significance of trees within multiple religious traditions, with an emphasis on the central role that trees have played in myths, rituals, and ethics. We will discuss how trees have shaped cultural worldviews and, in turn, how these worldviews affect the meaning humans make of trees.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Local Shade Tree Commission volunteer, Amy Levan, talks about the importance of urban trees.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Charly Lowry, an Indigenous singer-songwriter from Pembroke, N.C., blends powerful vocals with advocacy for underserved communities. Tickets: Bucknell.edu/BoxOffice or 570-577-1000
Weis Center
Rev. Fr. Paul Siewers is Associate Professor of English Literary Studies and will present an academic talk that includes Tolkein’s Ents.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
Support your friends as they perform at Crankiefest – a night of moving panoramas, poetry and music!
Weis Center Atrium
Olyssa Starry, Program Director at the BCSE, will share results from the Leaf It Be project and the importance of fallen leaves to soil health.
Samek Art Museum, Elaine Langone Center (ELC), Third Floor
There will be tree books and films on display throughout the semester that will be available for checkout. Available for Bucknell community only, BU IDs required.
Bucknell University, Bertrand Library
Share a creative expression of your favorite tree with a selfie, poem, or artwork. Submit to WeisCntr@Bucknell.edu. One submission per person, please.