Explore and Discover: 10am – 12:45pm

Festival participants are encouraged to explore the Slit Barn and surrounding area as well as rare Springbank Farm Hub to discover workshops, demonstrations and participatory activities.

Drop-in:
10am – 12:45pm

Resource House

Slit Barn:

Southfield

A project by Annie Dunning; facilitated by sophia bartholomew

Southfield is an illustrated field guide /poster of some of the butterflies Annie observed at the Southfield tract while doing butterfly monitoring in 2025. During the Long Dash Festival, visitors will have an opportunity to see the original illustration installed with some abstract clouds of letters that react to UV light. Butterflies can see the UV spectrum and this project is, in part, a speculation about how butterflies see the world. UV flashlights will be available for examining the artwork and wildflowers that butterflies might visit. Copies of the poster will be available for visitors to take home.
There will also be an opportunity to learn about the scientific procedures of butterfly monitoring by joining a butterfly walk (see below for details).

10am, 11am, and 12pm

Hikes will leave from Resource House

Slit Barn:

Butterfly Walks

Led by rare Research

Butterflies have long inspired artists and scientist alike through their beauty and contributions to pollination and other ecological services. Join members of the rare Research staff for a hike to learn more about butterfly monitoring at rare and help spot, view, and identify butterflies up close. Hikes will leave from Resource House at 10am, 11am, and 12pm. The hike will follow the ECO and Osprey Trails down to the river (~ 1.3 km roundtrip).

10:15am – 12:15pm

Slit Barn

Slit Barn:

Earth Pigments

Led by Danielle Petti

In this earth pigment workshop, attendees will learn how to make their own paint from rocks and soils. Danielle will walk you through her process; from foraging tips and crushing rocks to mixing the perfect paint. Processing the pigments will be done together with Danielle’s tools, alongside a brief history of earth pigments and an overview of sustainable art practices. This workshop is great for artists who want to have more of a connection to the materials they work with, but also for non-artists who are curious about this prehistoric way of making paint.
It is not mandatory to bring anything with you to the workshop, but it is encouraged to bring any soft rocks or soils you may have found. Not all rocks work great for pigment, your foraged samples can be tested out on the day of the workshop. Please Register.

Drop-in:
10am – 1pm

Slit Barn

Slit Barn:

A Puzzle at the Confluence of Two Rivers

Led by Andrew Maize

A puzzle at the confluence of two rivers is a large-scale prototype puzzle of the local area and we need your help to put it back together! This puzzle is challenging, because it uses the roads, highways and railroads as the matrix to cut out the pieces. These lines dissect the earth into grids and private property, bisecting ecological connectivity and controlling species movement. Rivers and waterbodies are the elements that often come together first - as they are more resistance to the colonial/capitalist desire to control and order nature. The act of puzzling is a fun and collective hands-on activity for all ages, one that asks us to actively puzzle together, in relation and with our hands, about the ways our stories and shared histories have shaped the land and our communities, with all it’s layers and complexities. So if you have an interest in puzzles, treaties, ecological connectivity, landback, anti-capitalist and decolonial ways of imagining our relationships to land - please drop by and let’s puzzle!

10:15am – 12:15pm

Garden Pavilion

Springbank Farm Hub:

rare Sketches: A Landscape Drawing Workshop

Led by Shelley Niro

This two-hour workshop will be a glorious way to spend time outdoors, sketching flowers, trees, insects and some of the outstanding vistas that can be seen at the rare gardens. Allowing yourself to explore this subject matter in a basic foundational perspective is the first journey towards peace and good mental health.
Art supplies will be provided. A sun hat is recommended to add protection from the sun.
Please Register.

10am – 12:45pm

Springbank Farm Hub

Springbank Farm Hub:

The Buckthorn Project

Led by Don Russell

Join artist Don Russell for a land restoration project at rare. We will be identifying invasive buckthorn trees, removing all that we find. We will then use an experimental technique to prevent buckthorn regrowth that will allow us to create a unique collaborative artwork on the land.
Please Register.

1pm – 2pm

Slit Barn

Slit Barn:

Lunch & Learn: Live, Love & LandBack

Led by Terri Monture

Workshop participants are invited to join us for a light lunch from Cedar Spoon Indigenous Catering as they learn from a member of Six Nations of the Grand River about our responsibilities to the natural world, and the true meaning of LandBack.