AVERY MALTZ
Born: New York City, NY, 1987 | Pronouns: he/him | Santa Cruz, CA
avery.rae.maltz@gmail.com
EXHIBITION HISTORY
Solo Exhibitions
2025 “Field Works,” Nolan Art Lounge, Northampton, MA
2023 “Florilux,” Site of Installation: Smith College Botanic Garden, Northampton, MA
2023 “Translation,” Site of Installation: Grounds of Smith College, Northampton, MA
2022 “Held,” Site of Installation: MacLeish Field Station, Whately, MA
2018 “Emergence,” Acadia Gallery, Northampton, MA
Group Exhibitions
2024 “Botanical Imagination,” Smith College Botanic Garden, Northampton, MA
2024 “The Boston Printmakers Student Print Exhibition,” Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Boston, MA
2022 “Understanding Climate Change through Plant Biology and the Arts,” Nolan Art Lounge, Northampton, MA
2018 “Wild Femme,” Flywheel Arts Collective, Easthampton, MA
2017 “Glitter,” Eastworks, Easthampton, MA
2016 “Clandestino,” Naimo Gallery, Salem, MA
2016 “Janus Arts Masquerade,” Gateway City Arts, Holyoke, MA
2015 “Art as Medicine,” Hope and Feathers Gallery, Amherst, MA
2014 “Metamorphosis,” Gateway City Arts, Holyoke, MA
PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS
Art and Visual Communication in Science – Two Part Workshop
November 2025 | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department, UCSC, Santa Cruz, CA
Senior Honors Thesis Presentation – Biological Sciences
May 2025 | Highest Honors | PLACE Lab, Professor Jess Gersony
Using the Optical Vulnerability method to further our understanding of drought resistance in Acer rubrum and Fraxinus americana.
Field Works: Exploring Plant Form through Botanical Ink Making – Artist Talk and Discussion
May 2025 | Smith College, Northampton, MA
Magnolias on the Move: Investigating the potential upslope migration of M. fraseri in response to climate change
August 2023 | The Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting, Portland, OR | Poster
Smith College, Conservation Internship, John Berryhill and Professor Jesse Bellemare
Our research sought to determine if Magnolia fraseri populations along an elevation gradient near the core of its geographic range showed evidence of emerging climate change impacts; namely mismatches between the distribution of reproductive adults vs. seedlings, as well as differences in adult tree growth rates.
Investigating the drought physiology of northeastern trees: A turgor loss point perspective
August 2023 | The Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting, Portland, OR | Poster
Smith College, PLACE Lab, Professor Jess Gersony
How eastern forests will respond to drought, with regards to carbon sequestration and biomass production, is poorly understood due to critical knowledge gaps and inconsistent classifications of drought tolerance for the dominant species. Here, we sought to help fill in this gap by quantifying a key drought trait (turgor loss point; wilting point) for northeastern trees both intra- and inter-specifically.
Seeing the Forest and the Trees: A vision of mutual liberation modeled by the complex systems of forests
April 2021 | Undergraduate Research Conference at UMASS, Amherst, MA | Video Presentation
An exploration of the potential for organic systems of mutualism, such as forest systems, to serve as a model for anti-oppressive systems of human organization.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS
Field Works
April 2025 | PLACE Lab, Smith College Office of Student Engagement
Solo exhibition of botanical illustrations painted with handmade inks derived from sustainably harvested plants. Each painting depicted species encountered through conservation fieldwork, rendered with pigments extracted from the local landscape. The exhibition explored material continuity between subject and medium, inviting viewers into intimate encounters with the living world.
Botanical Ink-Making with Dawn Redwood Cones
January 2025 – March 2025 | Hillyer Art Library, Smith College, Northampton, MA
Curated an educational display exploring the material journey from plant to pigment to painting. Exhibited process documentation, ink-making tools, dawn redwood cones, and an original painting created with ink derived from the cones themselves. The display introduced viewers to the botanical, chemical, and artistic dimensions of handmade ink-making.
Vegetal Forms: Knowing Place and Time Through Plants
May 2024 – May 2025 | Kahn Liberal Arts Institute, Northampton, MA
Cross-disciplinary fellowship exploring how engagement with plant forms cultivates ecological consciousness and human connection. As one of four student fellows, I developed my botanical ink-making practice and researched how material relationship with plants fosters intimacy with place. This work culminated in my solo exhibition, Field Works.
Botanical Imagination Group Art Show
October 2023 – March 2024 | Smith College Botanic Garden, Professor Lynne Yamamoto
Competitive site-specific installation commission for the 2024 Smith College Botanic Garden Annual Bulb Show. Created “Color Stream,” a suspended installation of over seventy hand-cut transparencies that cast shifting colors across the greenhouse as sunlight moved through the sky. The piece invited viewers to reimagine photosynthesis as a process of wonder.
EDUCATION
University of California, Santa Cruz, CA
PhD Student | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | Eugene Cota-Robles Fellow September 2025 – Present
Smith College, Northampton, MA
Bachelor of Arts (Summa Cum Laude) | Biology | Ada Comstock Scholar Graduated May 2025
Biology Major (Highest Honors) | Studio Art Minor GPA | 4.0
PUBLICATIONS
A new way forward for ecology research labs: learning from diverse, anti-racist disciplines, organization and experts. Poma Alarcon, M., Alexander, T., Thompson, I., Maltz, A., Gersony, J., et al. Ecosphere. (2025).
Art-making and plant biology as synergistic learning tools: Reflections on a sci-art undergraduate course about climate change. Maltz, A., Poma Alarcon, M., & Gersony, J., et al. Plant Science Bulletin, 70(1), 63–64. (2024).
Conservation Action Plan for Magnolia fraseri. Berryhill, J., Eserman-Campbell, L., Lee, D.J., Linsky, J., and Maltz, A. (2023 onward). Conservation action plan for Magnolia fraseri. Northampton, MA: Smith College Botanic Garden
Nota Bene 27Th Edition, 2021: Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society Literary Anthology. “The Artifact,” pp. 44-48
PRESS FEATURES
September 25, 2023
“Saving the Mountain Magnolia” by Rachael Hanley Hagerstrom, Smith Alumnae Quarterly, Fall 2023
EMPLOYMENT
PLACE Lab Research Assistant
September 2022 – June 2025
Prof. Jess Gersony, PLACE Lab, Biology Dept.
Smith College, Northampton, MA
Researched tree drought physiology in a lab dedicated to integrating plant science, art, and community engagement. Used imaging and laboratory methods to study how trees respond to water stress. Organized a student art exhibition with accompanying catalogue on the theme of climate change and the arts. Presented research at the 2023 Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting.
Conservation Intern – Smith College Botanic Garden
February 2023 – December 2023
John Berryhill, Landscape Curator,
Smith College, Northampton, MA
Competitive yearlong internship focused on conservation ecology. Partnered with Native Plant Trust, Indigenous communities, and the Massachusetts State Botanist to survey, collect, and conserve rare native plants. Collaborated with the Bellemare Lab and Global Conservation Consortium on Magnolia fraseri research, including fieldwork in Virginia and co-authoring a conservation action plan. Presented research at the 2023 Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting.
Index Seminum Seed Exchange – Smith College Botanic Garden
September 2022 – May 2023
Elaine Chittenden, Manager of Living Collections,
Smith College, Northampton, MA
Participated in regional seed collection and developed methods for cleaning and storing diverse species. Managed inventory database and packaged seeds for international distribution through the Index Seminum network.
SCHOLARSHIPS & AWARDS
University of California at Santa Cruz
Eugene Cota-Robles Fellowship | Fellowship recipient, Fall 2025 – Present
Smith College, Northampton, MA
Dean’s List | 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
Avery Maltz 