Mel Kolstad

A Canopy of Branches
reduction linocut
9.5 x 7.5 in.

Trees have always held a sacred space in my heart; wintertime deciduous trees, even more so. Some people see hope in the spring, when trees burst forth with their beautiful chartreuse, but I see hope and peacefulness in the bareness of a tree, showing us its vulnerability and quietude.

In creating this piece, I felt at one with this tree. As I carved the hundreds of tiny branches, my soul felt renewed. And even though I had to carve away all of that work at the end for the reduction (black) portion of this print, I still felt the tree’s peacefulness coming through.

© Mel Kolstad