If asked what is our most important natural resource, you will get different answers from different people. The government, who are insistent on destroying the environment through fracking, would probably say oil, while environmentalists looking for eco friendly power sources might say the wind or sun.
On the other hand, there is another natural resource that we use more for making things than creating energy. The wood we use from trees can be chopped, carved, and polished to make furniture, fences, paper, and a whole host of other products that we take for granted. With our extensive use of wood, deforestation has become a major problem.
Highlighting these concerns, four artists have decided to celebrate trees. Featuring work made from natural arboreal material.The
Tree 2013 exhibition is on display at the
Beaux Arts London Gallery until the 5th October.
Anna Gillespie's sculptures merge bronze casts of human figures with materials such as wood, acorn shells, and roots to explore man's relationship with trees. In contrast, her sister, Sarah Gillsepie is a landscape artist, and uses charcoal and ink to focus in on the finer details that the human eye often misses as we walk past.
Stephanie Carlton Smith likes to work with glass, and shows how trees interact with this man made material. Finally, Marilène Oliver is a photographer and sculptor who uses medical precision and digital technology to zoom in on the true nature of plants.