Nature lab is dedicated to Ms. Lind
“A labor of love” is what Ms. Lind’s nature lab is most often called. When you enter the art room, one of the first things you’ll see on the back wall is an aquarium, bones, and other specimens. Now added is a plaque on the wall dedicating the nature lab to Ms. Lind, its creator.
Inspired by the Edna W. Lawrence Nature Lab at RISD, Ms. Lind created EWG’s own nature lab when she started working here over 20 years ago. It started with a small still life collection and grew to a whole nature lab when Ms. Lind received a grant and was able to add specimens to the collection. In the past, she had a range of live animals, including cockatiels, bunnies, iguanas, ferrets, ducks, and even baby goats. No matter how difficult live animals can be, Ms. Lind has always tried to give the best art subjects for her students. “When we had the animals, I could never take a vacation,” she said, reflecting on the early years of the nature lab. Her passion for the lab comes from her love of bridging science and art together. She describes her own style of art as using lots of inspiration from nature and natural items.
Today the nature lab has grown outdoors. A new wildlife refuge has grown outside the art room, which is home to small animals and insects and has only indigenous plants in it. Being the smallest registered wildlife refuge in Rhode Island has not stopped the area from catching the eyes of students and faculty. The most visible part of the refuge is the tree that stands in memorial for two prior art students who have passed away.
I’m happy that we can do something for her while she’s still teaching here…this had to be dedicated to her.
Ms. Pichette
After witnessing all the work that Ms. Lind has put into these areas, Ms. Pichette felt it necessary to dedicate the nature lab to her in a ceremony which took place on Sept. 20. “I’m happy that we can do something for her while she’s still teaching here…this had to be dedicated to her,” she said, expressing her admiration for Ms. Lind’s work and how much she wanted her to feel recognized. Ms. Pichette’s motivation to do the dedication arose from an idea that popped into her head as she was preparing to return to school in the midst of COVID. “We just did it,” she said, expressing how she wanted Ms. Lind to be able to enjoy her dedication and be able to see it every day at school.
To make the ceremony a surprise, Ms. Pichette played the after school event off as a meeting. Using word-of-mouth, she was able to invite Ms. Lind’s family, past senior port students, and faculty members. When Ms. Lind was greeted by the large group outside, her surprise was evident. “What are my children doing here?” was one of the first things to come out of her mouth. According to her, her immediate feelings at the ceremony were worry and shock, her first thought being, “Am I sick?” She also described the feeling as if she were in a dream, at first not a good one. Once she realized that this event was not due to sickness, but rather to a dedication, her feelings of fear washed away and she was able to enjoy the event, with her daughter even joining on Zoom from Texas.
While talking to Ms. Lind about her work on the Nature Lab and Wildlife Refuge, you can see the passion that she has for these areas. They are open to everyone in the school and students are even helping to create a sign out and catalog for the areas. To sum up her work, she described the Nature Lab and Wildlife in these terms: “I’ve made my environment to fulfill me and to reflect me… I’ve never had a day that I didn’t want to come to work.”