When I think of wilderness I immediately think about going camping to places I thought were filled with wilderness. In the middle of nowhere with nothing else for miles, we would set up our tent and enjoy our surroundings. Liz Newbery discusses the idea of wilderness being “untouched” in Canoe Pedagogy and Colonial History: Exploring contested spaces of outdoor environmental education. She talks about wilderness as being “a space separate or away from home” and uses words like “empty space” and “unpeopled” to explain this concept. This idea of wilderness consisting of empty space untouched by people really resonated with my experience camping. Arriving at our campsite, untouched, we would have to figure out the best place to set up, as nothing was put in place. Everything in wilderness random, and unordered allowing for immense interpretations.
I have created a cut out scene on a box of my interpretation of wilderness. I have cut out different trees, a fire, and outlined grass on one side. On the other side I cut out a deer. When I have experiences times in wilderness there are many different trees, different shapes, sizes, and colors. Depending on the time of year, time of day, and past experience and knowledge everyone will interpret the trees differently. I have cut the trees out to show that different views will make the scene look different. I have cut out a fire to symbolize the activities that are done in the wilderness. Often when camping we would have a campfire, easily my favorite part. Spending time with family, creating memories, learning new things, and experiencing all life has to offer. Everyone has different activities that are meaning full to them, this is symbolized through the cut out. You can look at it many ways allowing for difference and interpretation.
On the back side of the box I created a deer to represent the animals that are in and around the wilderness. When you look through the deer you can see the trees on the other side, and while looking at the tress the deer peaks through. This shows that animals are always around us even if we do not know/ do not see them. They are a major part of our environment, and have a big impact on how wilderness is interpreted (ie. Might be more scary with clear sights of animals)