Nature Meets Canvas: Exploring the Connection Between Trees and Art

Over the past few years, we’ve collaborated with the Woodland Trust to create many inspiring and impactful campaigns. Beyond my work as a Media Executive at JAA, I am a passionate artist with a background in History of Art. To me, trees and art have a deep-rooted connection (pardon the pun).

Trees have long symbolised nature’s strength, beauty, and resilience in art. But beyond the canvas, they are art themselves – dynamic in form, with an ever-changing palette that shifts with the seasons. So, in honour of the Woodland Trust’s Tree of the Year competition, as well as the important work we do at JAA with the Trust, I’ve curated a list of my favourite artistic representations of these natural wonders.

David Hockney is widely regarded as one of the most influential British artists of the 20th century, celebrated for his monumental natural landscapes. In Three Trees Near Thixendale, Hockney revisits the same place across the space of a year. Capturing the passage of time, he subverts traditional landscape tropes in his use of through bold, saturated colour and distinctive brushwork.

I personally love the winter canvas, specifically the dynamic horizontal bands of colour in the foreground, that lead the viewer’s eye to the three central trees. Across all four works his vivid use of colour reflects the energy and rhythm of changing seasons.

The works are both vibrant and tranquil, which to me, is the essence of nature itself.

Ai Weiwei is a renowned contemporary Chinese artist who uses his work to explore social and political issues in modern China.

Tree is constructed from dry, dead branches, roots, and trunks collected from southern China, held together by industrial bolts with visible markings and joints. From a distance, it mimics a real tree, but up close, the visible bolts reveal its artificiality. Here, Ai WeiWei uses the tree to personify his outlook on contemporary Chinese society, as uprooted by industrialisation and modernisation.

Through the use of dead wood, the artist reflects on environmental destruction, caused by rapid urbanisation and the erosion of traditional culture. This is a powerful demonstration of how both trees and art can be used as a vehicle for expression, and I think Ai WeiWei articulates his own political commentary here beautifully.

Klimt was an Austrian painter known for his intricate symbolism, bold geometric shapes and dazzling colour. The tree of life is a common trope in art, religion, and culture that signifies a force that connects all, and the cycle of life and death itself. Here, Klimt represents this metaphor through rhythmic geometric shapes, dramatic lines and his signature dazzling golden palette.

Klimt depicts the tree’s branches through swirling forms that create an intricate rhythm across the canvas. This has been argued to signify the order and structure of the universe, as well as the cyclical nature of life. The shimmering gold adds a celestial, heavenly glow to the piece, whilst the tangled roots reach downwards, connecting the surrounding canvas to the earth. 

I love how here, Klimt takes the humble tree and its organic form, and conveys a complex ideology through art.

I studied this piece at university and it’s always been a favourite of mine. Whilst the tree isn’t the central focus, it’s a humorous symbol for the painting’s deeper meaning, and a snapshot into the moral values of the time.

Frans Hals was a master of the Northern Renaissance, known for his confident brushwork and ability to depict lifelike realism. Married Couple in the Garden is a marriage portrait, highly innovative at the time for the representation of a couple in such a relaxed and joyful manner.

The sturdy tree trunk on which both figures lean, is used here as a phallic symbol to convey the male’s competence and strength. Wrapped around this tree and trailing into the foreground is ivy.  As a plant, ivy is fertile, energetic and evergreen, but most importantly, relies on a support to grow. Here, Hals depicts the ivy growing up the trunk, clinging tightly and loyally to the male symbol. Using the tree and ivy to convey the wife’s dependency and loyalty, Hals portrays the husband as strong and faithful. This may seem like a controversial perspective on marriage today, but it was once deeply rooted in Dutch culture.

I felt it was important to include a female artist in my selection, as Art History has predominantly been shaped by males who have received the majority of recognition and acclaim. Also, as the festive season is upon us, I thought this would be a perfect way to round off my favourites list.

Tracey Emin is an English artist known for her raw, confronting and autobiographical work. In 2017, Emin unveiled a beautiful Christmas tree by the famous Mayfair hotel, the Connaught. The tree features her signature use of neon light, transforming the typically commercial lighting into a poetic, personal expression. Emin wrote a Christmas poem specifically for the installation which is wrapped around the tree in vibrant pink neon. The words, shaped in her distinctive handwriting, functions not only as a decorative element but also as an invitation for passers-by to pause and read.

Commenting on the tree, Tracey said ‘I liked the idea of making the Christmas tree a love poem because words are free. The poem relates to the smile and a smile is free to give, it does not have to cost anything’. I love how she transforms the tradition of the Christmas decoration to create a visually stunning, but equally emotive work.

Through these five artworks, it’s clear that trees hold a unique place in art and culture, symbolising strength, beauty, and connection. Whether through vibrant landscapes, thought-provoking sculptures, or poetic installations, they remind us of nature’s enduring inspiration. As we carry on our work with the Woodland Trust, we will continue to celebrate and grow this profound relationship between trees and creativity.