Sabi Designs is the creation of Cathy Gray and Karen Judd.
The Dendrochronology not only tells us the age of the tree but the passage of time each tree has lived. With each tree growing one ring annually these rings show a story of drought, fire, disease, insect plagues, wildlife and excessive rain. Long after these trees have fallen they continue to change shape, swelling, splitting and contracting with the exposure to rain and sun.
We source these cross sections from fallen trees in the Adelaide Hills and besides the environmental story each tree has a human story to tell. A marriage held under the shade of a once magnificent gum, the inspiration of the charcoal drawing of a cedar tree by Hans Heysen or a tree planted for a loved one passed too soon.
Each section is carefully brought back to our studio where we plane, sand and char the surface to reveal the depth of the rings, a process that can take days to complete. Ink is then applied to the surface and the canvas to the ink, careful rubbing completes the process. Only 10 prints are taken from each tree and every print will be unique.