Work in progress Cork Oak 1
This series of three paintings are an attempt to understand the cork oak tree in depth. I've also tried to take a look at the materials I use and see how they relate to the trees themselves. Raw materials for the artist-Forest Fires and the Cork Oak
Not only are cork oak trees important to the fauna and flora of the regions in which they grow. And not only are the trees a source of renewable raw material for the cork industry. The cork oak trees are also self-preserving. Many large forest fires ravaged the Mediterranean regions over the years with thousands of hectares blackened by the blazes. Pine trees and olive groves, eucalyptus trees and even vineyards have been burned and destroyed taking years to recover, if at all. Cork oak forests have not been immune to these massive fires either.The cork bark on these trees acts as a natural protective shield against the hot Mediterranean sun and the salty and sandy winds blowing off the sea and over the dry arid lands. The blazing fires that scorch the lands and the trees usually do not destroy the cork oaks. Indeed they too get scorched, but Mother Nature blessed the cork oak trees with fire resistant bark protecting the trees from total destruction. Although the brush and fields around and beneath the trees as well as the leaves of the trees are consumed by forest fires, thanks to the protective cork bark, cork oaks generally survive the fires and return to full growth within a short time. Nothing greater could highlight the insulating durability of cork and its protective qualities .
I began work on these large paintings using PVA glue and charcoal after reading this article in http://www.jelinek.com/about_cork.htm. Charcoal has obvious links to the survival of the cork oak tree and their protective qualities. The PVA glue is a vinyl acetate often used by carpenters to make items and also as a waterproofing agent. It seemed useful to use this as the painting for me as the artist is similar to that of the carpenter working on a wood object. The ink I used also comes from crushed beetle juice, though being a vegetarian I am not at all sure whether or not I am okay with this material. The insect a buprestid c undatis is responsible for making burrows in the cork oak bark and is associated with the decline of cork oak forests in the medirteranean. Its actions along with another buprestid are now tracked to see how the cork oak will survive see Cork Oak Woodlands on the Edge: Ecology, Adaptive Management, and Restoration By James Aronson, João Santos Pereira, Juli G. Pausas Edition: illustrated Published by Island Press, 2009 ISBN 1597264792, 9781597264792
How Is Cork Harvested
Cork stripping is the process of removing the bark off the cork tree. This is an extremely delicate operation made to look easy by the expertise of the cork harvesters. These experienced individuals use a machete to slice the bark into sections (the larger the section the better) and then they use a metal wedge to peel these sections from the trees. Although this is very strenuous work in itself, the harvesters need to take great care not to damage the very thin skin-like membrane which is found between the bark and the inner trunks of each tree. If this membrane were to be damaged it would weaken and perhaps kill the tree. It is this membrane that provides the nourishment to the cork trees. To register the harvest date and to ensure trees are not stripped again before the allowable nine years pass, after the bark is stripped from the trees the last number of the year in which the tree was last harvested is painted onto each tree (for example, if a tree was harvested in 2001, as shown in the picture, then the number 1 would be painted on the tree). This provides the control and assurance to both the forest owners and the environmental authorities that trees are not stripped before the ninth year following each harvest. This, among other cork forestry regulations, keep the cork trees in good health and producing good quality cork.Every tree, therefore, is a source of renewed raw material. The cork is cut from the same trees time and time again. This goes on for generation after generation for some 200 years. A tree in its prime at 80 years old can yield 440 lbs (200 kg). This is sufficient raw material to produce approximately 25,000 natural wine corks. Although most cork oak trees are just slightly larger then olive trees there are certainly exceptions. The world record was set in 1889 by a cork oak in Portugal which yielded no less than 3,870 lbs (1755 kg) of cork in one stripping.
Not only are cork oak trees important to the fauna and flora of the regions in which they grow. And not only are the trees a source of renewable raw material for the cork industry. The cork oak trees are also self-preserving. Many large forest fires ravaged the Mediterranean regions over the years with thousands of hectares blackened by the blazes. Pine trees and olive groves, eucalyptus trees and even vineyards have been burned and destroyed taking years to recover, if at all. Cork oak forests have not been immune to these massive fires either.The cork bark on these trees acts as a natural protective shield against the hot Mediterranean sun and the salty and sandy winds blowing off the sea and over the dry arid lands. The blazing fires that scorch the lands and the trees usually do not destroy the cork oaks. Indeed they too get scorched, but Mother Nature blessed the cork oak trees with fire resistant bark protecting the trees from total destruction. Although the brush and fields around and beneath the trees as well as the leaves of the trees are consumed by forest fires, thanks to the protective cork bark, cork oaks generally survive the fires and return to full growth within a short time. Nothing greater could highlight the insulating durability of cork and its protective qualities .
I began work on these large paintings using PVA glue and charcoal after reading this article in http://www.jelinek.com/about_cork.htm. Charcoal has obvious links to the survival of the cork oak tree and their protective qualities. The PVA glue is a vinyl acetate often used by carpenters to make items and also as a waterproofing agent. It seemed useful to use this as the painting for me as the artist is similar to that of the carpenter working on a wood object. The ink I used also comes from crushed beetle juice, though being a vegetarian I am not at all sure whether or not I am okay with this material. The insect a buprestid c undatis is responsible for making burrows in the cork oak bark and is associated with the decline of cork oak forests in the medirteranean. Its actions along with another buprestid are now tracked to see how the cork oak will survive see Cork Oak Woodlands on the Edge: Ecology, Adaptive Management, and Restoration By James Aronson, João Santos Pereira, Juli G. Pausas Edition: illustrated Published by Island Press, 2009 ISBN 1597264792, 9781597264792
How Is Cork Harvested
Cork stripping is the process of removing the bark off the cork tree. This is an extremely delicate operation made to look easy by the expertise of the cork harvesters. These experienced individuals use a machete to slice the bark into sections (the larger the section the better) and then they use a metal wedge to peel these sections from the trees. Although this is very strenuous work in itself, the harvesters need to take great care not to damage the very thin skin-like membrane which is found between the bark and the inner trunks of each tree. If this membrane were to be damaged it would weaken and perhaps kill the tree. It is this membrane that provides the nourishment to the cork trees. To register the harvest date and to ensure trees are not stripped again before the allowable nine years pass, after the bark is stripped from the trees the last number of the year in which the tree was last harvested is painted onto each tree (for example, if a tree was harvested in 2001, as shown in the picture, then the number 1 would be painted on the tree). This provides the control and assurance to both the forest owners and the environmental authorities that trees are not stripped before the ninth year following each harvest. This, among other cork forestry regulations, keep the cork trees in good health and producing good quality cork.Every tree, therefore, is a source of renewed raw material. The cork is cut from the same trees time and time again. This goes on for generation after generation for some 200 years. A tree in its prime at 80 years old can yield 440 lbs (200 kg). This is sufficient raw material to produce approximately 25,000 natural wine corks. Although most cork oak trees are just slightly larger then olive trees there are certainly exceptions. The world record was set in 1889 by a cork oak in Portugal which yielded no less than 3,870 lbs (1755 kg) of cork in one stripping.
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