The Story of the Olive Tree, by Raz Rotem (Currently at my gallery)
These three illustrations are another piece of my current display at the gallery. Part of the artist's dissertation, these pieces represent a story-telling aspect to the body of work.
They represent three or four stories, but for the sake of not giving away too much before his papers are published, I will just tell one story. The Story of the Olive Tree.
On the day the king died, the world fell into mourning.
The people cried and wailed. The animals brayed and kicked. The plants wilted and lost their leaves. It was like this all across the kingdom. None could be found who did not show their sadness for the king. none, but the olive tree, whose leaves remained resplendent in the sun, and whose branches held up strong.
The other plants of the kingdom looked angrily at the Olive tree.
"Why?" They demanded. "Why, when all of us are laid low in mourning, are you standing so tall and proud?"
What they did not know, because they could not see, was that although the olive tree stood strong and remained beautiful, inside, it had grown hollow with grief.
I've changed it slightly, out of respect for his upcoming defense, but the overall story remains. He wrote it in the style of an old myth, or a story you might hear passed down by generations, a parable of a sort. Perhaps to explain something as simple as why one plant is the way it is, perhaps to help illustrate to children that one cannot judge another by appearances alone.
Old myths, legends, 'old wives tales' all have that abstracted from reality quality which allows them to be layered over individual situations, providing a wide swath of teachings depending on the context of the lesson.
I think tomorrow I may dip backwards in time and share something from the beginning of the journey of this gallery. Maybe our first show, which happened just over a year ago. Maybe a year and a couple weeks.
Until then, cheers!
~Rachel
Rachelsvparry.ca