Wednesday 26 May 2010

The Big Tree

As promised, here is the first in a series of photo essays.

The Big Tree - acrylic on canvas, 2' x 5', 2010

This painting is a continuation of my fascination with missing the greenery back home in BC. There are grand palm trees and spectacular bouganvilla here, but I do miss the sound of leaves clapping together when a strong, clean breeze flies through. When I lived in Nanaimo and in Coquitlam, there was always a forest just beyond the property line in my backyard. And though most of the trees were majestic evergreens, the leaves of the white birch trees were the ones that made the sound that I love.



In this piece, I at first wanted the leaves to evoke water. So in the first layer, I have painted a stained-glass-like pattern of blue waves around the trunk and branches.


The Big Tree in progress - underlayer 1




I will admit that once I returned to the painting a few weeks later, the piece took on a life of its own, and this is what happened:

The Big Tree in progress - underlayer 2




The Big Tree in progress - underlayer 3





The Big Tree in progress - underlayer 4







The Big Tree
in progress - almost there




The Big Tree
- near completion






The Big Tree - acrylic on canvas, 2' x 5', 2010

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