A film of myth, mask and folklore inspired by the Carboniferous, imbued with folksong, forged by the blacksmith ...

Hart of the Wood 'Ways of the Plant', is a bold new multidisciplinary art & film project, led by artist and filmmaker Benjamin Wigley, which celebrates humanity's ingrained relationship with the woods that spans deep time; carbon, the Carboniferous and the journey of coal.”

Working collaboratively with the Hart of the Wood artist collective, Ben responded to the Lapworth’s extensive Carboniferous fossil collection to create a new multi-modal film and art exhibition at the Lapworth Museum of Geology; on display throughout 2023.

The exhibition is made up of hand-crafted photographic prints, etchings, drawings, sculptural work, that form elements within a new major artist film work. This art feeds into the single channel hand processed 16mm film as a material layer that infuses experimental film with myth, mask, folklore and documentary and is the first work in a Triptych of films entitled ‘Hart of the Wood’.

The Hart of the Wood Collective, is a group of multidisciplinary artists and collaborators, led by Benjamin Wigley, Nathaniel Mann, Stephen Jon Cooper & Martin Sommerville, with various shifting specialisms in the visual, sonic & performative arts. The HOTW Collective also create alongside a range of other artists, scientists, thinkers and makers.