I have just received some very exciting news from The Tree Council in London:
“Hi James,
Can I just say your art work is incredible. We at the Tree Council would love to commission you to create an illustration for our Young Tree Champions ambassador t-shirts, which we are looking to print in May. We would also love you to join our ambassador team, inspiring children across the UK with your amazing art work. Here is our Young Tree Champion website.”
I’m delighted to hear that the image of “Within The Woodland” is suitable for the Tree Council’s online Festival.
My new “Trees” collage is also made from discarded National Lottery scratch cards.
I live in the Yorkshire Dales and am lucky to have nature here on my doorstep to inspire me. I have learned to appreciate even more the views of open countryside, as well as the beautiful woodland landscapes that we have here.
Now though, just over the year since lockdown began, I feel ready to travel further than I have done in a long time. My From Waste To Wall exhibition in the south-east starts on 20th May 2021 is represented by one of my latest pieces of artwork, Árbol de la Vida / Tree of Life, which I created from used Spanish scratch cards.
It has been a busy time with all the preparation work, especially with my second exhibition starting in Richmond, North Yorkshire on 29th May 2021. I took sections from my Tree of Life to be printed in my new leaflets that give information about the events taking place and the reasons why I became an environmental artist.
I also recently decided to showcase a collection of my tree art in a special calendar for 2022 that is available to purchase now through my website.
I would also like to add how much I have enjoyed being out in woodland settings this month and photographing the blossom trees and bluebell woods.
I love the colours of nature especially at this time of year. I use my own photography for inspiration and ideas (as shown below in one of my sketch books) and trees often appear in my artwork.
I like to experiment with texture and work with all kinds of materials including old plastic packaging, donated fabric samples and recycled paper in my art.
