'The Fallen'

Art Statement

A thousand years they stood upon high ground
Among the rugged peaks they could be found
The Ancient pines that weathered many storms
Were shaped and sculpted into twisted forms

Life was harsh amid the howling gales
With hails of ice and snow as sharp as nails
The hand of nature carved a tale of  war,
a history of battle scars they wore

A thousand years they held the ancient fort
There's nothing in the world they couldn't thwart
Until it came the time that none foresaw
The landing of the tall-ships on the shore

Their tailcoats fine, their faces grim and hard
Dispensing fire with wanton disregard
They sent the primal forests up in flames
Till nothing but an English lawn remained

Relentless like a powerful machine
Devouring like a wild and hungry fiend
The hordes of new invaders multiplied
And fueled their appetites with genocide

The carnage came before them like a tide
Gathering momentum far and wide
And only token patches have survived
A 'heritage'? - their leaders can't decide

Two hundred years is all it took in time
To gut the ancient forests in their prime
We lack the means to judge its rightful worth
But you can see what's left on Google Earth

The wilderness has paid a hefty price
Now balanced on the sharp edge of a knife
A slogan brags that 'balance' is the key
That's surely just a shallow fallacy

So here is our consumer driven flaw
What happens when resources are no more?
By then we will be forced at last to see
That we are not so different from the tree

But in our reckless drive to have it all
I fear we may not hear the last one fall

- Fiona Francois -

The Fallen drawing in progress

The Fallen drawing being scanned using a grid system