In Praise of Trees

November - December 2022

Pieces range in size and demonstrate such techniques as collage with fabric and paper, needle felting, ice-dyeing, botanical prints, raw-edge appliqué, hand embroidery, hand painting, stamping, beading, and fusing. Most pieces are available for purchase.

Participants: Liisa Fagerlund, Sue Gale, Debra Olson, Kathie Cook

Liisa Fagerlund

Description: Raw-edge applique on felt, commercial and hand-dyed cotton, free-motion stitching, hand embroidery, wrapped cords.

Inspiration: Traveling in the Escalante area of the southwest, I was entranced by leaves full of color and shape. I collected samples and sketched and painted them in my sketchbook. The paintings were used as patterns for the addictive creation of these items.

Kathie Cook

John Muir “Between every two pines is a doorway to a new adventure.”
Some people are water people. They have to live by the water. Some are desert. Some are mountains. I am definitely a tree person. I can’t be happy or calm unless I am in the company of trees.
Trees clean the air.
Trees are home to many animals and provide them with food and shelter.
Trees provide spectacular color shows during the year.
Trees sing in the breeze.
Trees provide endless inspiration.

Debra Olson

My bedroom growing up was on the second floor, with windows looking out to the street. We lived in a small town in Iowa, where Dutch Elm trees were majestic and plentiful. The yard in front of our house was canopied by them. During thunderstorms, I remember crouching by the window watching for lightening preceding the tremendous thunder, feeling protected by those grand trees. Our neighbors had a sprawling Maple tree which became a haven for all the kids to climb and watch the world go by, sending its schizocarps (seed pods) helicoptering to the ground! It felt so much like another safe place.

As I got older, I spent hours walking through the woods wherever I was living, always preferring the sun filtering canopy to a paved city street, which sometimes would be a more direct route to my destination! I eventually earned a degree in Landscape Design, which brought a greater appreciation for the variety and importance of trees and plants in our lives, not simply for aesthetics, but also for the air they clean, stability they bring, their longevity, resilience and regeneration. They give us food, shelter and are as necessary as breath itself.

Artistically, I am in awe of the variety in size, leaf shape, color and structure of trees. I’ve planted trees wherever I’ve lived and certainly have some favorites and I can’t help but collect leaves each fall on my walks. They often inspire and sometimes are even included in my work.

My hope is that the observer will take time to slow down, notice the trees that surround us, and find a bit of pleasure, comfort or appreciation.

Sue Gale

Sizes and shapes of trees have always fascinated me.  The amount of stress they endure through wind, cold, rain, and fire is a statement, in itself, as to their strength and stamina. Cypress trees on the coast of California are eternally bent over from the constant winds off of the Pacific ocean.  Giant Redwoods that stand in groves, some for thousands of years, and rise to seemingly touch the sky.  I’ve often wondered what the view would be from up there.  In recent years, with fires, many of these trees sustained much damage, only to respout and continue growing. The enormous Sitka spruce trees in the Olympic rainforest are naturally adorned with hanging moss and lichen making them a spectacular sight to behold.  Bamboo is the fastest growing plant on the planet.  It is a crucial element in the balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.  There are known to be over 60,000 species of trees in the world.  I would guess most people would only ever see a few hundred in their lifetime.  I’m thankful for the trees I can see just outside of my windows, and as I’m driving or riding my bike, to enjoy their beauty, color, and swaying rhythm.