I received a lovely email during the year from a woman who told me she had come down to Victoria from Queensland for work and was visiting their Melbourne office. While there, she saw artwork on the walls — one of my Gold Collection Tree pieces.
She said she was captivated by it. It took her straight back to her childhood, playing under the tree on their family farm. She came from a big family of nine children. One of her brothers had sadly passed away as a child, and there were also two sets of twins in the family.
She asked if I could paint their story. And if I did, she said she would love each family member to have one of the Gold Collection limited edition prints.
At first, I hesitated. I wasn’t sure what would happen to the original painting. Normally, people ask me to paint something so they can own the original work. But this story needed to be shared through art, no matter the outcome. I trusted the universe to decide where the original painting would end up.
I completely resonated with her story of a big, busy family. I’m from one too, so I understood it well.
The adventures, the laughter, the friendships between siblings. The picnics, the surprise of another sibling being born, the menagerie of animals. Finding mice and keeping them as pets. Cats and dogs who became your best friends. Fort and tent building in the garden. Imaginary spaceships landing. Dancing in the lounge room. Music playing at full volume and parties all under the same roof.
A big family is always full of life. There were never many moments of quiet until bedtime. Even then, you’d hear doors opening and closing, the toilet constantly flushing, or your brother sneaking out to watch a scary movie, only to realise it was too scary and wake you up so he could put all the lights on.
I completely understood what she was asking me to create. A painting filled with energy, nostalgia and love.
The Farm Tree was created.
Each sibling in this painting is represented as a kookaburra. In my work, kookaburras are a symbol of family and strong bonds. In nature, they stick together and look after one another. That loyalty continues into adulthood. They share a whole life together.
There are two white kookaburras in this piece, representing two brothers who have passed away. One was part of a set of twins, and the other passed away as a young child.
They still fly with their family in spirit. Always connected. Always home.
