“A Field Guide to Other People’s Trees” – an exhibition of recent photographs and vignettes by Margot Anne Kelley – will appear in The Leonard R. Craig Gallery at the Unity College Center for Performing Arts beginning Wednesday, Feb. 25.

“A Field Guide to Other People’s Trees” will be exhibited Feb. 25-28. An opening reception will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26 at the gallery. The reception is free and open to the public. Kelley will give a short reading and sign copies of her book, and refreshments will be provided.

Presented in conjunction with the recent release of Kelley’s book of the same name, “Other People’s Trees” presents a series of photographs and lyrical essays that explore the one-acre yard of the house in Martinsville, Maine, where Kelley lived for more than a decade.

Working with a local arborist to identify and determine the ages of the trees in her yard, Kelley imagines the history of the place through the various trees and other sorts of greenery that grow there. People and critters matter, but their roles revolve around those of the trees. As she observes in the introduction, for trees to survive, all the owners of the house have to let it stay when the house changes hands. Thus, the trees tell us a great deal not only about themselves — but about the interests and preferences of the folks who share space with them.

Kelley holds an MFA in media and performing arts from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design and a PhD in English from Indiana University.  She exhibits nationally and is currently collaborating with the photographer Barbara Bosworth on another book-length project about a meadow in Massachusetts.