Part of the Art Walk of Tree Sculptures in the Town of Orangeville
Tree spirits are artist Colin Partridge's specialty. "Every tree has a spirit and it takes the artist to bring it out," he says. With his mouth open, this tree spirit on Broadway looks like he has something to say.
What are tree spirits all about? In the 15th century Europeans believed that evil spirits lived in the dense forest where the males hunted. They believed that when men went out to hunt for food and never returned that the evil spirits of the woods had taken them. As legend would have it, they also believed that the trees maintained good and the most powerful of the spirits so before entering the forest they would knock on the trees to wake up the sleeping spirits to protect them. This is where the saying "knock on wood" or "touch wood" came from. Tree spirits have a great sense of humour, gentle wisdom and will bring luck into your home.
