The yew - once Europe’s most sacred trees
Red Green Yew bark
The bark of the yew tree turns bright red after being wetted by the rain.
Yew Bark Crowhurst Surrey
Swirling pattern in the bark of an ancient yew create the face of an old man
sticking his tongue out.
Red Arils
The red fruit of the yew is technically an aril rather than a berry because
the nut is surrounded by a soft fleshy cup which does not touch it. The
immature fruit look like green acorns before the outer covering swells and
reddens. |
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A photographic exploration of the cultural significance
and natural beauty of ancient yew trees
Andy McGeeney
My intention is: to challenge our current understanding of the yew; to
explore our deepest responses to them and celebrate their significance and
beauty.
Once Europe’s most sacred tree, the forgotten yew has lived on in dark
churchyards and mature woods for centuries. Inspired by the yew tree’s
capacity for renewal my work aims to regenerate a new appreciation of our
island’s oldest living trees.
I am fascinated by the responses the yew tree evokes in myself and other
people.
There are yew trees in this country that have been alive for over 2,000
years and probably much longer. The yew was the inspiration for the Tree of
Life in Northern and Western Europe as was the Palm in the Mediterranean
region. Many yews are rooted on sacred sites that would have been a focus
for Iron Age communities and a continued source of inspiration throughout
the Christian era.
The project is still evolving as I increasingly work on the essence stated
in the title: the yew has strong, apparently paradoxical, associations with
death and renewal; Millennial themes contrasting Iron Age ancestors with our
future focused industrialised culture; and our own brief lives set against
the extended time dimensions of wider ecosystems.
Britain is unique in having the largest number of ancient yews in the world:
the exhibition explores the reasons behind this. It reveals the biological
explanations for the yew trees incredible longevity over many centuries; why
they are found in churchyards; and their mythical significance as the Tree
of Life in NW Europe.
The visual impact of the yew photographs is often a surprise to audiences.
Beneath the dark foliage are beautifully coloured barks and flowing
sculptural forms, expressed in living wood.
There are approximately 30 images with accompanying panels of short text and
extracts from poetry. Pieces of naturally sculpted old yew wood are also
displayed.
Andy McGeeney has been a wildlife photographer and writer for many years and
has been working semi professionally for the past fifteen. His photographic
work has been used in a wide range of books, magazines and advertisements.
Jonathan Cape published A Complete Guide to British Dragonflies in 1986: the
first and only photographic guide of its kind, using over 200 colour
photographs taken by the author.
“As well as its evident beauty I am interested in the meaning of the yew
tree: to our ancestors and what it means us today. The yew project has
become an exploration of time, death, renewal, ecology, and a deeper
personal connection to Nature.”
His first public exhibition was at the invitation of the Nailsworth Arts
Festival in Gloucestershire as part of their Millennial celebrations. The
yew photographs have also been exhibited at: the Ancient Yews Conference in
Cromwell Road London, organised by the Conservation Foundation, November
2000; the Alexander Gallery Epping, Essex for 3 months in Summer 2000; Hull
City Museum 3 months 2001; and Swaffam Priors, Cambridge, over Easter 2001,
Hereford, Soil, Soul & Society Conference Sept 2001. The current show is the
culmination of a five year exploration of the yew tree.
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