‘Macrocarpa: Versatile, Rugged Immigrant’
From the series: Some of my best friends are plants
There’s a rugged specimen of a macrocarpa right in front of my Boat Shed Studio on the Raumati beachfront. I never get sick of the view out to sea which in large part is framed by this wonderful tree.
This macrocarpa, like many of its relations, has real personality: awkward and almost ugly, while at the same time embodying a unique and subtle beauty. In summer it is home to children testing their climbing skills and wedding parties posing for photos.
Macrocarpa often have sprawling, spindly trunks and branches with very dark pine-like foliage and it is these elements that are represented in this piece. The painting also contains bark and scraps of the scraggy foliage that are visible close to the work. I burnt some of the twigs I’d brought home and used those as charcoal to draw on the canvas with.
Although not native to New Zealand, the macrocarpa is abundant, having been a feature of the Kiwi landscape since being introduced in the 1860s, primarily to provide shelter, but also for timber used for fence posts and railway sleepers. The early settlers who brought it all the way across the oceans, well understood macrocarpa’s rugged and resilient properties and that it would be able to withstand even the most harsh environments they might encounter.
Acrylic on Canvas
1600 x 800mm - (Stretched Canvas)
Delivery Details
Delivery is free in the Wellington area, nationwide does vary according to where and what freight company but a large work is in the vicinity of $300.