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Writer's pictureKoby Avraham (MA)

The meaning of a tree in children’s drawings

Updated: Mar 23

 




The tree is one of the most significant elements in children’s drawings, containing a wealth of information about the artist. The tree itself, in its entirety, holds great importance. To properly understand the meaning of the tree as a tool in Kids drawing analysis, one must study the tree and its significance.

 

The tree is, in fact, a representation of us. The lifespan of the tree in the drawing corresponds to the lifespan of the person who drew it. If the artist was six years old at the time of the drawing, then the tree’s lifespan is essentially six years. If the artist was thirty, then the tree depicts the events that occurred over the past thirty years.

 

Kids drawing analysis involves examining the tree in two ways. The first is considering the entire tree, from the roots to the tip of the tree at the top. We divide the tree into three parts based on the following division: the roots, from the ground line downwards, tell us about the artist’s past. The trunk, from the connection to the ground up to the beginning of the tree’s crown, teaches us about the artist’s present. The part of the tree’s crown, in fact, teaches us about the artist’s future.

 

The second way we look at the tree in Kids drawing analysis is by examining the depicted details. The structure of the roots, the thickness of the roots, their depth. In the tree trunk, we examine its thickness, whether it changes its thickness, when it changes its thickness. Are there wounds in the tree trunk? Is there a spiral in the tree, where is it located? What is the direction of the spiral’s drawing? We examine if there are broken branches along the trunk.

 

In the upper part of the crown, we examine the structure of the crown, the structure of the leaves, their density. We examine the thickness of the branches, their splitting. We examine if there are flowers on the tree. We try to see if there are fruits, what is their size, color? Where are the fruits located, what is their distribution?

 

Is there a concentration of branches on one side more than the other, this has significance regarding the thinking and learning ability of the artist.

 

Of course, the colors of the tree and its parts, the direction or inclination of the tree to the right and left, have great significance.

 

Every small detail gives us a lot of information about the artist.

 

In looking at the overall drawing, there is significance to the location of the tree, its size, whether there is only one tree or more? What does it mean that there are more than one tree?

 

Another important element to know, since the tree teaches about events during the artist’s life, we can divide the tree into equal parts where each part indicates a year in the artist’s life, according to the ruler created we can place one event or another in the year it happened. And if we divide into a smaller number of parts, we can more accurately determine the time of the event and its duration.

 

As interpreters of drawings or as detectives of drawings, the tree is one of the largest and most significant sources of information we have about the artist.

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