Daily Practice
Journal
I painted this 700 year old live oak from a photo we took while we were in Charleston, SC several weeks ago. I painted it in my journal and I hope to redo it in a larger format. It was a really good practice for 'next time!' LOL
So many of the live oaks along the South Carolina coast have reached these massive proportions and gnarley, wild shapes. Their evergreen leaves and annual acorns make them an anomaly among other Quercus (oak) species. The trees often support Spanish moss, a small-sized orchid and resurrection fern, plus dozens of various wildlife - both as a 'home' and as a source of food. The live oak was the timber used for the construction of the USS Constitution.
Those living with these trees have many incredible tales to tell about them - and these giant trees have been used from storage units (when hollow) to meeting places, to jungle gyms..... I collected many of these 'tree stories' when I worked on my research projects ... and the people and the trees continue to be fascinating!
We've got meetings from sunup until dark tonight and much driving between .. so I"ll be scarce. I hope to catch up tomorrow!
Hope your day is grand! Hug a tree or two while you're out!
5 comments:
Wow; tree hugger than I am, I would have a difficult time hugging this one. What a beauty. There's just something about majestic old trees that pulls at one's heartstrings! Thanks for a lovely painting Lin. I also like the people in it.
Pace yourself as much as possible and hope all goes well today.
Hugs,
Lorraine
It amazes me how big the trees get in the south. Lovely view.
Lovely!!! I like how you used the figures to emphasize the scale of these huge trees. I'm always amazed by their size.
Have a great day! I'm heading into Manhattan this afternoon for dinner, a show, and possibly a bit of sketching I we get in early enough.
This is an absolute inspirational source for me to visit! Great pieces of art! greetings from Chile. I love your work!
Leonardo
Lin...so beautiful. I wish it was me walking under those branches with the spanish moss hanging down. I love taking photos of trees, and I love all the info on the live oak that you shared.
http://elaineakers.blogspot.com/
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