THE KINDLE TREE HOUSE

Oil on canvas, 36 x 48 inches, 2014

(Private collection, Winter Park, Florida)

The Kindle Tree House is a work created for a family of three, each with different interests and likes. The concept of a huge tree growing on an island had been used in other paintings, but this one, from the beginning, was to be different, particularly by the details of the tree branches and leaves, as well as by the attention to details of the wooden structures incorporated into the tree. The top building, with a windmill, reflects the Dutch "connection" of the owners, and features stained glass windows. The tree house is supposed to be "ecologically friendly," so the viewers have to imagine that all the power in the tree house is supplied by the wind. The balloons and the dragon-dirigible also relate to the owners, even though they are a common feature in other paintings. Gardening, boating, scuba-diving, and reading reflect the favorite activities of the family. A careful viewer will recognize Captain of America shield and a symbolic electric bolt on the front doors and the important dates on some of the wooden buildings. One of the author's dogs, Annie the hound, is guarding the tree on the right side of the painting. Finally, a relatively "realistic" portrait of the family appears at the bottom of the work, near the stone wall.

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