"The paper tree" Natalie Sanchez, Q2

For my second quarter two Art project, I was inspired by a friend. My friend, Uyen, was painting a blossom tree and she asked for my help to mix the color of the flowers of the tree.  As we mixed the paint for her project together, I was struck with an idea; I wanted to make a tree as my second project. I did want this tree to be boring, however. I wanted this tree to be interesting. I wanted this tree to be made out of paper entirely.

To make my tree, I used paper, paint, tape, cotton balls, and glue. I first made hardened paper in the shape of a tree. This paper was hard, flattened paper. My friend, Vichay, taught me how to make hardened paper. I then proceeded to attaching paper balls to the paper tree shape with tape (to give it some bulk). I then papier-mâchéed the tree with paper, instead of newspaper. After it dried, I painted the tree. I did not have brown paint, so I was forced to mix the paints that I had into a brown color. I painted my tree brown. When I finished painting, I realized that my tree looked too plain. I then grabbed a handful of cotton balls from the bathroom, dipped them in green paint, let them dry, and glued them to the branches of my tree. My initial plan was to attach actual branches on to my paper tree, but the harsh weather proved to be a challenge for that.

In the end, I was able to make a paper tree.  The paper aspect of the tree is symbolic of all of the trees that are killed of and cut down in order to make paper. In this project, the cycle continues, and the paper is made back into a tree. With this project, I hope to raise awareness how truly important trees are for our environment. Trees supply us, and the animals around us with oxygen, so let’s take a more eco-friendly approach and recycle paper.

Overall, I am very happy with my final product. I never thought that the tree would look this good.  The process of this project was definitely very tedious and complicated, but I did enjoy it. I was able to use my creativity to solve problems and make lemonade out of lemons. I was able to get over the challenges that aroused during this process, and use the supplies that I did own to make the tree as detailed and realistic as possible.