One of my favorite tree abstracts from my Circle series has found a new home in Portland, Oregon — a new addition for collectors who bought their first David Castle abstract nearly two decades ago.
As I packaged this large painting up for shipping (48 x 48 inches!) I thought about what inspired me to paint this particular group of five trees… a certain spot I discovered 30 years ago in the forests of Luxembourg.
I’ve always been drawn to trees. They are calm, sometimes invisible sentinels, ever-present in our lives and landscapes, but never judging as they witness each of our journeys. I readily absorb the calm and peace they exude. Some of trees I’ve known most of my life still stand: a few pines my mother planted in the yard of my early childhood home outside of Denver; a giant pecan tree on the abandoned farm where I spent many of my middle years picking up the nuts they strew. And surely some still stand in the forests of Luxembourg where I once sought refuge from the stress of the world. All of these trees (and more) are still there in our landscape, silent witnesses to our hopes and dreams, our triumphs and failures.
So, as I painted these particular trees, I remembered a favorite spot I found once in the forest around Vianden Castle in northeast Luxembourg, very near the German border. I lived and worked in Brussels, Belgium at the time in my former career as a computer consultant. My job was a constant source of enormous stress so on the occasional free weekend, I would escape to the countryside. Over two years, I hiked forests and toured castles throughout Belgium, Germany and my favorite destination — Luxembourg — where I found a spot that I returned to many times. It was particular glade where the autumn sun broke through the canopy making a spot for me to sit and absorb the poetry of the trees.
It was that spot and those trees that I explored in my memories as I painted (many of my photos of this special place had been lost to theft years ago). I remembered the calm of that place as I selected the greens and purples for the trees. And, this is my only circle tree abstract that I added a few circle clouds in the sky!
David Castle Art 