Alders have overtaken my imagination at the moment and I’m currently working on a series of charcoal drawings and monoprints exploring their character and habitat.
This fascination began in 2021, when I made a trip to a small alder site near Langholm in the Scottish Borders. The trees I found there made a deep impression on me and, although I only had one morning with them, they’ve been popping up in my sketchbook ever since.
What is it about these trees which keeps calling me back?
Open grown trees in wood pasture (wooded land grazed by cattle or deer) have space to stretch out sideways, so don’t need to grow tall. They have striking silhouettes with angular and unruly limbs. When a branch breaks its interior glows a startling orange like hot lava, as if on fire. Their trunks are enjoyably unkempt, often hollowing but with straggly new growth around their base.
They grow either very close to or actually in the water. The ground squelches and the sound of running water is never far away. When I find a dark, squat old tree emerging from a still pool it feels like a glimpse of something magical. I’m in a ‘thin place’ here.
Alders at Haddo House and Country Park
Last week I made my regular winter tree trip to Aberdeenshire and this year focused on finding some new alders to develop my current project.
At Haddo there’s an area which was enclosed as a deer park in the 17th century and I’d heard from a local tree professional that it contained some old alders, so I planned a day to discover and another to draw there.
It was about 5 degrees, with no wind and for most of the day just soft winter light – perfect to see and draw their form and structure. Then after a few hours the sun found its way out and I was treated to glowing greens and browns and long shadows. I had the company of roe deer, raven, jay and redpoll as I worked. Pure joy in the moment – time stands still when you draw.
As I explored the wood, I wondered what else has crossed the land; hooves of cattle, horse and deer, boots of drovers and woodsmen. I also thought about what flowed under my feet; water, roots, mycelium, memories, stories.
To me these trees seem to embody resilience, responding so inventively to being chopped, nibbled or blown about. Although it’s a challenge to capture all this complexity and emotion in a sketchbook, each drawing becomes a record of our encounter which will sustain my studio work.
Read more about the Langholm alders