Wooden Bread

Here’s a survival recipe

An old witch once gave to me

Bread or crackers made of wood

Can be a real emergency food

Here’s what she said:

The most important thing it seems

Is to never never use evergreens

Trees with needles green and stickly

Can poison you or make you sickly

Use fresh wood only

From the maple, birch or hickory

And you’ll be able to feed yourself or your family

If ever you have an emergency

Take your fresh wood and whittle a lot

Until fine shavings have fill a big pot

Fill the pot with water

But don’t over blow

Boil it off for a couple of hours or so

Then dry out the shavings in the sun

For a day or until the drying is done

When the shavings are dry and not like […]

Mind two big stones to grind them with

Grind the shavings to powder and then

Grind the powder again and again

Now bake the powder on a flat stone

Over a fire don’t leave it alone

And when it is cool bake your wood

Three more times and it will be good

When you’re through making your wooden flour

Store it for a year, a day or an hour

Whenever you want to bake some bread

To nourish your body to feed your head

Mix the powder with fresh salty water

And bake on a rock that is hot or hotter

Enjoy the bread that’s crisp and crunchy

For breakfast, dinner or for lunchy…

Lyrics from the song Wooden Bread by Bruce Haack (1974) written down "by ear" of Arturas Bumsteinas and later followed as an inctruction (recipe) to produce the original artwork (edition of 5).

Wooden Bread #1 in the author's kitchen

Wooden Bread #1 in Arsenal Gallery, Bialystok, Poland

Wooden Bread #2 in Antje Wachs Gallery, Berlin

Wooden Bread #2 courtesy of Mr. Ad van der Koog

Wooden Bread #2 courtesy of Mr. Ad van der Koog

Wooden Bread #3 courtesy of Mr. Lieven Bertels

Wooden Bread #4 courtesy of Mrs. Chris L'hoëst

Wooden Bread #4 courtesy of Mrs. Chris L'hoëst

Wooden Bread lyrics installed in author's home