SUMMER MAPLE


Come and admire the maple tree in winter, its strong wide limbs coated in snow, as sparkling white as diamonds. Stand next to the loyal Sugar Maple in spring, reach out and feel the rough bark under which the life blood flows, sweet sticky sap rushing to the topmost twig. Lie under the cool deep shade of the tree, in summer, and look up to see the sun creating patterns through the branches. Wade through her fallen leaves in autumn, as she sheds her beauty and feeds the earth below.

Maple trees have played a major role in my daily life since my childhood. Sugar maples bordered two sides of our immense lawn, at my childhood home. Currently I have a row of huge Manitoba Maples along the creek bank that curves along the west and north sides of my property. I never tire of watching the transformations of the Maples, here in Ontario, as the seasons change.
I reached for a piece of deep brown glass and it spoke to me of the serenity of trees, the roughness of bark and the scarlet leaves of fall. The “Four Maples” were born. I did not leave the studio for hours as the trees emerged onto glass. Each piece is large and was fired on its own in the kiln. Twenty four hours after I placed the first tree in the kiln, it came out a glowing single piece of art, finished and demanding only a frame and companion trees to stand beside it.