Artist's Reflection

Title: Trees Remember the Stories We Tell

Medium: Handmade book

Creator: Cynthia Ferrari, Class of 2006, Director of Special Grant Projects

The Sisters of Charity began planting tree seedlings along Seton Hill Drive in 1924, which means that many of the London planes are over 100 years old. As the college grew, so did the trees. They witnessed everything that happened along the way, and I believe our history is stored in their roots. London plane trees are known for their elaborate root systems. A massive tap root grows straight down––providing a solid foundation––and smaller roots grow outward two to three times the width of the tree’s canopy. 

Science tells us it is through these lateral roots that trees communicate with each other. With over 100 London planes on campus, we have a community of “talkers.” These trees are witness to our stories and experiences. If only they could tell us what the campus was really like through the years. How did people interact and what were their feelings about the world around them? What secrets do our beloved trees hold and share with each other?

I created a book in response to these thoughts. Using stencils cut from photos of the London plane trees, I printed tree patterns on text wove paper and used it to make the hardback cover. For the inside of the book, tree shapes were cut from the prints in a repeating pattern, with the shapes progressively getting larger so when the paper was folded accordion style, it would mimic a tree line. I chose colors to depict the trees in autumn and juxtaposed them against black silhouettes of themselves because they are just as brilliant at night. Opened like a traditional book, the folded trees overlap and lay flat upon themselves, but when the book is stood on end, the two sets of trees pull out to depict the path up the hill. 

I think of those trees as the holders of all that happened at Seton Hill. They are the memory keepers of our collective experiences of this special place. But more than that, the trees serve as a model of strength and comfort for the challenges in our lives. London plane trees represent resilience and adaptability. They grow that deep “tap root” to form a solid foundation for themselves, much as we have done at Seton Hill, and they stay connected to each other. People and places evolve, and the world moves on. But those trees – they swing and sway right along with the times.