The Tree of Royalty

 
Size: 40" x 32"
 
Date: 1998
 
As my forest grew, I wanted to include a majestic one, so I created the Tree of Royalty. Its majesty, of course, is provided by the work of the roots (their anchorage, absorption, aeration...), what might be called the laboring pariahs, and by that of the main stem, the trunk, which is in charge of the distribution of nutritious goods—the bourgeoisie, you might say. Together they support the "royalty" at the top with its leaves and flowers, bright colors, singing birds, copulating bees, and its acrobatic squirrels leaping about its delicate stretching branches. So, in my tapestry, we have the sad buried figures at the root, the smiling big-bellied trunk, and the capricious and frivolous royals at the top, as always the center of attention and having all the fun. —P.C.