Putting down roots

As an illustrator, Haley McAndrews, of Denison, has always been interested in trees as a subject.

“I was a military kid growing up. I was born in South Carolina,” she said. “We moved across the country a couple times, so trees for me represent growing up as well as being able to put roots down and stay in one place.”

One of her most-recent works, called “The Tree of Life,” is currently on display at the Putnam Museum and Science Center in Davenport.

The piece is part of an exhibition called “Tails from Tales,” which features taxidermy displays and art inspired by children’s picture books.

“There was a call for illustrators, specifically,” Haley said. “We got to pick out a book or a book series that we wanted to use as inspiration.”

Nineteen local artists were chosen for the exhibition.

A range of 2D and 3D art pieces, inspired by stories from “Aesop’s Fables” to “Winnie the Pooh,” are featured.

“Mine was inspired by ‘The Great Kapok Tree’ by Lynne Cherry,” she said. “I was really excited when I saw the book on the list of possible books to choose because I already have a series of tree paintings and drawings.”

The book tells the story of a man who goes to a rain forest to chop down a kapok tree.

“The trees are massive, so as he’s chopping, he gets tired and lies down to rest,” Haley said. “While he’s sleeping, all these different animals that live in the rainforest come to him and whisper in his ear while he is asleep. They tell him all the different reasons the tree is important to their ecosystem. When he wakes up, he looks at the animals and they look at him, and he sets his axe down and he leaves.”

She decided to show the silhouette of the tree containing all the living things in the rainforest.

“I couldn’t even tell you how many different animals and plants are on there: bugs, bees, flowers, fruits, nuts and other things from the rainforest,” Haley said.

“I filled in the silhouette of the tree with all of those different animals and plants to represent how much that tree affects the other life around it. The ecosystem in the rainforest is all so connected.”

She said she is satisfied with how the piece turned out.

“I had some hesitation as I was working on it – but I really believed in my initial inspiration – the original idea – so I kept working on it,” she said. “It came out different from all of the other pieces in the exhibit but I think that’s a good thing.”

“The Tree of Life” is the only black and white piece at the exhibition.

“I had thought about adding some color to it, but I liked the idea of leaving it black and white so you could look at the piece a number of times and see something new each time,” Haley said. “It doesn’t all jump out at you all at once; there are a lot of different details that people could discover every time they go to the exhibit.”

Story Ads 1

**Tree of Life, by Haley McAndrews, illustrates all the ways the rainforest ecosystem interacts.**

As different as her piece is, it still fits well within the exhibition.

“It’s interesting to see it amongst the other pieces, the other artists and the variety that is there,” she said. “One piece was made from stained glass and one was a quilt; one was digital but it looked like a wood cut. It was really incredible to see all of the other works and to see my piece as part of the show, as well.”

Haley is currently working on her third children’s book as writer/illustrator; she’s also working on an illustrated book of poetry.

“It’s a book of almost 40 haiku poems that are all toaster-related,” she said. “Each one has its own illustration of a toaster that goes along with it.”

Both books are set for release next year - and she has other books in the works.

Haley said she loves writing and illustrating, but she is surprised the direction her career has taken.

She has a bachelor’s degree in art photography from St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, Minnesota.

“It’s one of those things that when I was a young adult in my early 20s, if someone had suggested being an illustrator, I don’t know that I would have gone for it,” Haley said. “I kind of had that idea that I had to focus on the fine arts aspect after getting my bachelor’s degree in fine art photography.”

She said it now seems like a no-brainer that she ended up as an illustrator.

“I’ve always loved cartoons, and I’ve always loved children’s books,” Haley said. “Fine art is wonderful, but I think I’m an illustrator and it took illustrating my first book to realize that about myself.”

She and her husband, Jon, have lived in Denison since 2017.

“I keep going back to trees throughout my art because the time I’ve spent in Denison is the longest I’ve lived in one place for almost my whole life,” she said. “To be able to put roots down in one place, and stay in one place, and have a history in one place; that’s a foreign concept to me. I always kind of wanted that, and Denison has been that place for me since moving here six years ago with my family.”

“Tails from Tales” will be on display at the Putnam Museum and Science Center in Davenport until May 2024.

Follow us on Facebook for the latest news and updates