Apple Wood Wooden Apples

Yes, they are apples made from apple wood.  The stem and leaves are made of copper with a patina finish.  There is quite a story behind the apple wood used in these pieces.  Over 100 years ago, seeds of the Gravenstein apple were planted in the Summer Haven community on Mt. Lemon in Arizona. The tree grew and flourished and bore fruit for years.  One year a forest fire burned through the mountain community and burned the tree severely.  The tree recovered and continued to supply the residents with fresh apples.  More recently, another huge fire burned across the mountain side and this time more damage was done to the apple tree.  The community lost many summer cabins and businesses.

 In planning to rebuild and expand facilities, the fate of the apple tree which was barely clinging to life, prompted a committee to suggest it be honored in some way in the new community center.  Artists were asked to submit proposals for a fitting creation.  My wife, JoAnn and I submitted one of the three ideas the committee considered.  Our proposal was to construct an apple tree wall relief made of apple wood from the burned tree.  It would be complete with apples like those shown above.

I also finished two small section of a burned-out limb to illustrate how the surface could be covered with sections of apple wood, similar to the construction of my art vessels.  The one shown below used tile pieces of apple wood whereas the second example used round cross sections of apple wood limbs. The second sample was my favorite and it also must have been the architect's.  He took it and that was the last I saw of it. We made a formal presentation to the design committee and all went well.  The other two artist's work were approved.

Several members of the committee started  lobbing for the actual tree being placed as a three dimensional art piece in the main room of the center.  They were long-time residents of the community and were quite emotional about the old tree.  This splintered the planning group with members taking sides and meeting after meeting failed to resolve the dispute.  One of the other artists suggested placing the tree outside or creating a metal tree for exterior placement.  We quietly withdrew from the conflict and took the pickup load of apple tree wood trimmings that had been given to us to work with, to our studio.

The tree was cut down and stored in a back area behind the buildings, covered with a tarp.  The other artists were well along with their projects which used most of the allocated funds.  The committee, in an effort to create additional funds, planned a gala event including a dinner and asked if I would make wooden apples to be auctioned at the event.  I made a dozen like those shown in the first photo. We were invited to attend and received courtesy tickets, but we had a conflict with the date.  That was the last we heard from the committee and so ended our public art project

*More detail can be found on my art at my website <www.apatchablue.com>.