Twisted

 

Photo of Suze Woolf painting of burned tree
 
Painting Details
Varnished watercolor on torn paper
52" x 21"
 
I saw this tree on Carlton Ridge south of Missoula, Montana. Its seemingly classical contraposto position (think Michelangelo's David) captured my attention as well as its finely carved topography of fire carved lignin layers.

As the climate warms, forest fires are becoming more frequent and catastrophic in the western United States. My deep anxiety with the impacts of climate change on wilderness are emerging in this series. Burned-over areas of forest are riveting. Unfamiliar tree forms are newly exposed. Formerly hidden terrain features become visible. Normal greens, blues and browns are transformed. All the worst fires of the last fifty years have occured in the last five years.

Please contact me if you are interested in learning more about any of my images. All represent original paintings, not reproductions. I have many more paintings than are shown on this site. And, since I frequently work in series, there may be additional views of the subjects shown here.