The world of arboriculture found me by accident,
as I gather has been the case for many people in
the industry. Covid hit the reset button on my life,
bringing me back to Ottawa, Ontario to live with
family and search for work to supplement my free-
lance arts career that was put on pause during the
pandemic. One day, my sister had her tree pruned
by an arborist; I watched him work and asked ques-
tions about the job, which he then invited me to come
try out. I ended up training as a groundie and later
started climbing as well. Now I'm in my second and
final year of Forestry at Collège La Cité, and I work
as a climbing arborist for L'ambassadeur de l'arbre.
My entry into arboriculture has directly nurtured (and
been fed from) my artistic practice, most evidently in
my work as a drag king (performance art playing, in
part, with gender identity). From October 2020 to April
2021, I created the work, King of Chlorophyll, a video
project featuring original music, poetry, costumes/
makeup, photography, collage, and visuals. In 2022, I
reimagined the project into a live outdoor show (Imago)
featuring tree climbing, aerial hoop, storytelling, music,
and poetry. I am continuing to pursue this path of
"arbor-artistry": I have several ongoing and upcoming
projects where I am involved both as a composer/
director and tree climber/dancer, most notably in my
dual role as climbing arborist and composer-performer
for an immersive French theatre piece with Théâtre à
corps perdu (to be created in Switzerland, Bénin, and
Montréal from 2023-2025). I am excited to see how
I can develop these intersecting passions further.
I find people are generally very excited about trees
and tree climbing, and want to know more. Zipline
parks, canopy research, and science communication
are all high on my list for things to explore further.
I'd love to develop performances that allow climbers,
performers, and the public to interact with trees
in different ways. I'm a big advocate for learning
through play and think this could be a great way
to get people engaged in caring for the forest.
Kim
Farris-Manning
12 CityTREES
Kim Farris-Manning performing her live
outdoor show, Imago, in September 2022
in Ottawa. Photo by John Duimovich
12 CityTREES
