Day 5: Oriental Spruce
I spent the morning with the Oriental Spruce again. This drawing took an especially long time to complete due to the challenging angle and intricate branches. While sitting with the tree, I sketched several compositions that I felt could capture the experience of being beneath its canopy. It felt like a kids fort all woven in secrecy. Also, it was full of sap. Some jerk bird was digging holes in its bark, which was definitely making it go into repair mode. I found this funny book at Martin House Books (The Field Guide to Dumb Birds of North America). I need to go back and get it.
In the afternoon, I began turning the work into a mixed media piece, incorporating maps of Westerly, bark paper, weaving, and some sewing. I wasn’t happy with how the sewing turned out, so I’ll likely leave that part out. However, I might add some stitching directly on the paper tomorrow.
I’m happy with it so far, but I’m going to let it sit for a bit before gluing everything down. Sometimes a piece needs space to breathe before it feels complete.
This tree is one of the Rhode Island Champion Trees in the park. It is magnificent, the more you look at it. The trick is to get underneath it and look up. This is the angle I captured in the drawing. I may still add color to the drawing with a light watercolor wash of blue sky color.
I had to get creative with a kitchen knife to cut into the tree bark paper. I didn’t bring my Xacto knife, so this worked out just fine. The image on the lower right is where I am headed with this piece. It just needs a little color which I will think about tomorrow.
Update July 20th: I’ve finished the piece!
For all of the artworks I’m creating during this residency, I’m aiming for a quiet, contemplative tone, which is why the colors are intentionally muted. This particular weaving was inspired by the feeling I had while sketching beneath the canopy of the tree. It was calm, grounding, and quietly profound.
Woven into the bark paper is a map of Westerly, Rhode Island, circa 1891, a nod to the deep history of this place. I also ended up changing the embroidery to something I like much better; it feels more in harmony with the rest of the work. This work is available for sale at my open studio on July 26th 2-4pm as well as on my website soon. It will not be framed, but backed by foamcore and a clear plastic sleeve for protection. You may add a frame of your choice that measures 10”x 20”.
