Below the Bark exemplifies the Missoula Art Museum’s commitment to exhibits that combine societal and environmental phenomena with art. Three artists and a local scientist from the University of Montana created this exhibit in response to the bark beetle infestation, deforestation, and climate change. This infestation has commercial, recreational, and environmental impacts within western Montana and the greater North American forest ecosystems. The term “bark beetle” is typically used as a catchall for over 600 species of weevils that bore through the interior bark of trees to feed and reproduce. Tunnels can be “read” like human handwriting and give insight into the lifespan and needs of each individual beetle. This show focuses on pine and spruce bark beetles, which have destroyed millions of acres of forests in recent years. Shifting climate patterns, like milder winters, allow for the proliferation of these beetles to kill off massive swaths of trees.

This exhibit is a collaboration between artists Jim Frazer, Tim Musso, and Suze Woolf. The works presented are strongly influenced by not only artistic inspiration and practice but by scientific research and philosophy. This exhibit includes linocut and woodcut prints, photography, handmade books, and climate charts.

This exhibit is sponsored by the Holiday Inn Downtown.