Forsythias of West Stockbridge

Ubiquitous, aglow and unapologetically yellow.

Forsythias are so commonplace around here, you’d be forgiven for overlooking them. Most of the year they are nondescript shrubs without much to offer insects and birds other than shelter, yet when forsythias break winter dormancy, they are hard to ignore.

I always enjoy their explosion of color as being a definitive marker that winter is truly behind us. No late frost will interrupt its bloom, timed almost perfectly with the goldfinches’ return to bright yellow plumage.

With some spectacular forsythias blooming in my immediate vicinity, I began to wonder about others that I hadn’t seen – where were they hiding, and what did they look like?

This brief project over a couple of days in late April had me driving around our town of West Stockbridge searching for bursts of yellow. In the process, I met residents of the town I had never spoken with before, helped a guy with a flat tire and no cell service call his mechanic nearby, and explored roads and lanes of the town that I had never seen.

Forsythias of West Stockbridge, photographs by Tom Bland.

Here are some more favorites from the series:

We made a little free zine of this project featuring a selection of the photographs and we’re leaving them in the West Stockbridge info booth here. Unfold it and stick it on your fridge! When they’re gone, they’re gone – just like the forsythia inflorescence.

Thanks for reading, and happy Spring.

Tom, & Diana

---

---

We don’t paywall our work here, so your support means a lot. If you’d like to show your appreciation, this page on our website gives you a few options.