Before Sennema started planing and chiselling, the Het Drentse Landschap foundation wanted to be sure that the tree would not suffer permanent damage. On the advice of the dendrologist of Hortus Botanicus, the ‘wound’ will not be larger than an A4 sheet and no deeper than 15 centimetres. Within this format, the tree can recover without any problems.
Employees of Het Drentse Landschap chose the tree. “We are very careful, because there are many special trees here,” says Jermo Tappel of Het Drentse Landschap. “This tree is perpendicular to a historic avenue, on a beech that is very old. And has a fantastically beautiful canvas for the artist.”
A good choice, according to the artist. “This beech is well protected against wind and rain. And it is very healthy and strong, which is necessary to recover. Yes, that tree and I do really well together,” says Sennema.
The artwork was unveiled on October 30, the birthday of Henk van Lier Lels. According to Sennema, the portrait will be visible for about 20 years, until the tree absorbs it. Then the portrait will still live on in the tree, but will no longer be visible from the outside. Sennema: “You are actually doing violence to nature, but my sins are forgiven. Nature conquers and I think that is a very nice comforting thought.