Cart is emptyAbout Forest to Table
As an artist, I was eager to create the furniture as editions of artwork. With a commitment to eco-forestry and sustainable forest management, I use responsibly harvested trees from my property to create these tables. This not only helps preserve biodiversity and support our local ecosystem, but also brings the captivating textures and colors of nature into indoor spaces.
All Forest Tables are Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified.
Forest Table
I started crafting the first pieces for Forest to Table using trees that had been harvested and cut throughout the previous decade.
The 2021 Edition features a collection of 41 dining tables in various sizes, as well as 23 coffee tables.
Come 2022, a significant portion of the year was dedicated to acquiring our new woodworking equipment, renovating the workshop and studio, and opening our seasonal store in Chéticamp, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. As a result, the 2022 Edition consists of an exclusive and limited run of 4 small tables and 5 coffee tables.
Our upcoming releases will incorporate lumber sourced from trees that were toppled during Hurricanes Dorian and Fiona.
Many of the tables and coffee tables showcase intricate wood patterns, offering a unique and high-end, distinctive aesthetic – perfect for dining areas, boardrooms and cottages. Other Tables show a more uniform appearance, which can be ideal for matching sets for cafes and restaurants.
Forestry In Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia forests are amongst the most intensively harvested in Canada, with clearcutting accounting for around 95% of cutting in Nova Scotia.
Forestry practices in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are significantly outdated compared to the rest of Canada, falling behind by at least 25 years in reforming cutting practices, and fair compensation for small woodlot owners.
I have explored various options throughout my four decades of experience as a woodlot owner and operator. It has shown that the most effective way to see proper value from my forest is to create a product that will be appreciated for many generations yet to come.
I believe that Forest to Table plays an integral role in driving the reform of forestry practices in Nova Scotia.
Neal Livingston
Owner
Neal Livingston is a known Canadian artist, whose work spans mediums across filmmaking, photography, and painting, to crafting tables and sculptures made with wood from his forest.
Livingston’s award-winning films have been shown on national television around the world – including Canada, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. Many of Neal’s films have been shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and he was honoured with a retrospective of his work at the Cinematheque Quebecoise in Montreal in 2001. Livingston’s photographs are part of the collection at the Canadian National Gallery for Contemporary Photography in Ottawa.
In wood, Neal produced a series of unique beautiful pieces from trees called TREE ART in 2003.
In 2021, Livingston began producing editions of tables from trees harvested from his own forest. Using eco-forestry practices – and frequently incorporating trees felled by strong windstorms – the pieces created by Forest to Table possess a unique quality that sets them apart as truly distinct within North America.
Neal uses his skills as a mature artist to design tables that accentuate the inherent wood patterns and colours found within the trees.
In 2008 the Province of Nova Scotia awarded Neal as the Eastern Counties Woodlot Owner of The Year, with another nomination in 2021. The Nova Scotia Woodland Owner of the Year Award recognizes and rewards landowners for outstanding stewardship of their woodlands.
Black River Maple Products is Livingston’s awarding-winning commercial maple syrup farm, operating in the Mabou and Inverness area of Cape Breton Island since 1985. Tapped from maple trees on the steep hills of the Mabou Highlands, Reader’s Digest Canada noted Black River Maple Products as one of Canada’s most unique maple syrup farms.
Maple Products | Black River.
Neal Livingston is also a well-known and devoted, award-winning community volunteer activist for the environment in Nova Scotia. Renown Climate Scientist, Michael Mann, quoted Neal in Newsweek on October 4th, 2020 in an opinion piece regarding filmmaker Michael Moore’s recent release.
Since 1984 Livingston owns Black River Hydro Limited, a 200kw hydro plant selling power to Nova Scotia Power, and since 2013 is a part owner of a 6MW, 3 wind turbine, company Black River Wind Limited.
Today his table workshop, maple syrup operation and home property are powered by both 72 solar panels solar and water power.