Rae Lang fell in love with Michigan’s outdoors long before they picked up a carving tool. As a kid, they spent summers mountain biking and hiking near their aunt and uncle’s cottage on Lake Michigan.
Years later, while attending college in Grand Rapids, Rae would escape to Saugatuck Dunes State Park to clear their head. Back home, they sketched the landscapes they’d explored.
Today, Rae creates hand-carved woodcut prints inspired by the outdoors. Through Woosah, their art and apparel brand, they capture Michigan landscapes not just as they look, but as they feel: towering trees, spring blooms and the hush of the woods.
That love of place has also led Rae into environmental advocacy. They’ve used their art to raise money and awareness about the risks associated with Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline, which crosses the Straits of Mackinac between Michigan’s Upper and Lower peninsulas. For Rae, those landscapes are also places worth protecting.
Camp & Country: Were there particular places in Michigan that helped shape your connection to nature and your art?
Rae: The first was when I was a kid. The year I was born, my aunt and uncle bought a cottage near Trails End Bay, by the Headlands and Wilderness State Park. Every summer, we’d go up for at least a week and mountain bike, hike, and (try) to windsurf. Spending time in nature with my family was pivotal. I grew up outside Detroit, where we had a lot of lakes, but nothing as awe-inspiring as Lake Michigan. The cottage still brings back so many memories.
Later, when I moved to Grand Rapids for college, I found myself driving to Saugatuck Dunes State Park. It became a grounding place where I could reconnect. I didn’t have a studio then, so I’d go home, draw in my kitchen, and make artwork inspired by the day.
C&C: Tell us about Woosah. How would you describe yourself as an artist and business owner?
Rae: I never studied business, and I never really saw myself growing a business one day. But I was always an artsy kid, so now, as an artist, my business mirrors that. I’m passionate about exploring nature and art, and that colors what my business looks like — rather than the other way around.
I started Woosah in 2011, when I became an LLC while studying industrial design in college. After starting Woosah and spending all my time creating and making art, I realized it was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I switched into printmaking, learned how to carve woodcuts, and feel like I found my medium there. Lately, my art is expanding into ceramics, which has been really fun. I’m collaborating on that with my wife, Kelly. Woosah is an outlet to share my love for nature with the community. I love that it’s playful and fun, and doesn’t have to take itself too seriously.
C&C: How does carving a place by hand differ from taking a photograph of it?
Rae: One thing I love about carving is how present you have to be. You can’t put back something you’ve already carved away. It’s not a high-stakes pressure feeling, though. I just feel very present, so it’s calming.
Sometimes I want to create the feeling I had in a place, not a literal representation of what it looked like. It can be a mix of capturing a scene someone might recognize and adding my own feeling — like the trees felt so big they were towering overhead, or it was spring and all the flowers were in bloom. Color can help share that feeling, too. Other times I’ll just make up a scene from my imagination.
I’ve gone on a hike or traveled and seen something that looks just like a woodcut I made. I don’t know if these things are manifesting through the art, or if I’m just paying more attention because I’m interested in them.
C&C: Your studio moved from the shop to a space in the woods. How has that changed your creative life?
Rae: My first store was on Division Street in Grand Rapids, and my studio was in the store. It was fun to share printmaking with people who walked in, because it’s not something you come across unless you’ve studied it or know a printmaker. But it was hard to focus and get into a creative zone.
Then we moved to Wealthy Street. My studio was above the shop, but we shared the space with our team, so it wasn’t really a true studio day. I always dreamed of having a studio in the woods, surrounded by the thing that inspires and grounds me. We bought a house with a pole barn in the backyard and converted it into a studio. It’s been so nice to hop out there pretty much any time, even after my kids go to bed, and work. Sharing it with Kelly has also been a learning curve: I like the space clean and tidy, so I can be creative, while Kelly can [endearingly] just hop right into the mess.
C&C: How did you get involved in environmental advocacy through your art?
Rae: Line 5 was the first natural advocacy work I felt really connected to. I wondered if I could actually do something about it using my artwork. The pipeline runs right under the bridge, just west of it, near my aunt and uncle’s cottage. If it were to rupture, it would be a huge spill and affect a very big region of the Great Lakes.
The pipeline is over 50 years old, and Enbridge is also responsible for the Kalamazoo River oil spill. It’s very dangerous and, in my opinion, not worth the risk. The Great Lakes are one of the most precious resources we have. I made art around the issue and raised funds. Since then, I’ve tried to find causes that matter to me and use my art to speak up and support nonprofits raising awareness or doing good work.
C&C: What makes the Porcupine Mountains special to you, and what would you recommend visitors see?
Rae: The Porcupine Mountains – also known as “The Porkies” – are a special place. Kelly and I got engaged there. I feel like people forget the Upper Peninsula is even there. A lot of people cross the bridge or go to Marquette, but don’t venture far enough to see how incredible it is.
We camped at the campground in the fall, and it was gorgeous to see the colors changing. It was a little chilly, so you have to pack for winter up there—it even snowed during the fall. Lake of the Clouds is one of the most gorgeous views, and I definitely recommend doing that trail. The waterfalls are crazy, too.
C&C: How has Woosah’s relationship with coffee and community spaces evolved?
Rae: We used to run Outside Coffee in Grand Rapids, but since relocating our space to Saugatuck, we now go by Woosah Art + Coffee at our storefront. We kept the property in Grand Rapids because it’s an amazing community space with an outdoor patio and a food truck garden. We have two trucks operating there, and we leased our old storefront to a brewery called Our Brewing.
It’s been really cool to see that space live on as a community space where people can gather and be together outside. It always felt special to connect outside and have the time to sit as long as you want without feeling rushed. The brewery is originally based in Holland, but they now have taps and a small brewing setup at their additional space at our old shop in Grand Rapids. They’ve made the space look like an old, vintage lodge — which we love.
C&C: What Michigan outdoor destinations would you recommend to visitors, and which places are still on your own bucket list?
Rae: It’s hard to narrow down my favorite Michigan spots, because a lot of them are just around town or in my own backyard. But for someone traveling from out of state to hike in Michigan, these are worth the trip in my opinion:
For a memorable and beautiful Michigan hike:
- Pictured Rocks: Chapel Loop
- Porcupine Mountains: Escarpment Trail to the Lake of the Clouds Overlook
- Saugatuck: Crow’s Nest, with a picnic in tow
- Sleeping Bear Dunes: Empire Bluff Trail, for an incredible view
- Wilderness State Park: for dark sky viewing
- Duck Lake State Park: Duck Lake Trail, then wade out through the channel to Lake Michigan. It’s a fun place to fish and look for rocks.
And a few still on my bucket list include:
- Sleeping Bear Dunes: Pyramid Point
- Isle Royale National Park: Huginnin Cove
- North Country Trail: Manistee River Trail