Family Tree with “Russian Roots”

Each family tree I create is a completely unique work of art.  I don’t repeat my designs, and I always try to come up with some creative elements to underline something unique about the family my painting represents. I always get a kick adding little, barely noticeable details that are so subtle that one needs to know the family’s story to get them.

I’ve recently completed a custom family tree painting for a couple who both come from Russia.  Interestingly enough they met in the U.S. and most likely would’ve never met if they stayed in their home country. I knew that their heritage and place of origin are very dear to them, so I wanted to incorporate their roots into the illustration. Once again, I didn’t want it to be something obvious.  I wanted to figure out a way to add the couple’s Russian heritage as interesting and creative details.

The colors of the Russian flag as the basis of the color scheme of the painting

I knew right away that I wanted to use the colors of the Russian flag in the banner with the family name, but I wanted to do more than that.  So I limited the color palette of the painting to mostly white, blue, and red (the 3 colors of the Russian flag).  I painted the wife in a red dress, the husband in blue jeans, and their 2 boys in blue outfits. They were all different shades of blue, but blue nonetheless.

More personal details to make the painting even more personal

I wasn’t adventurous enough to do the whole tree in white, red, and blue. Which was most likely for the best.  I wanted to keep the tree leaves green.  But which tree to use?  Whenever I can I try to use the type of tree that actually means something to the family.  I’ve decided to use a birch tree because it is often associated with Russia.  It also has a white tree trunk, an added bonus to keep up with my original color palette idea.  After I’ve decided on the tree my mind jumped to what other Russia-related subtle details I could paint.  Since the painting was for a woman’s birthday I figured adding some flowers, preferably associated with Russia would be a nice touch.  So I added cornflowers and daisies (both are very common to the country).

Family’s favorite pastime

When I paint my family trees I always try to make them as personal to the family as possible.  I often try to incorporate the family’s hobbies and/or favorite pastimes into my artworks.  In this particular case the family enjoys having picnics and being outdoors, so I painted the couple seated on a blanket next to a picnic basket.

I’m happy to report that the birthday girl loved her family tree and it was a smashing success with other family members as well.  The best part for me was when one of the little boys had no problem recognizing himself, his brother, and his parents.  🙂

Little Michael examining his family tree