This image has haunted me for years… I saw it once in a book in Dunedin Public Library, and it has been part of me ever since, but I never knew who drew it or where to find it.
I just love her red coat and the largesse of the tree, and the fact that it looks like it might be a windy day. I like that she is alone.
For years now I’ve trawled through children’s illustration websites trying to work out who the artist was. I remembered that the woman who drew it had a triple barrel name, but couldn’t remember anything else, except that I found the picture in a book collecting that artist’s work. Eventually I worked out that it might be by Nancy Ekholm Burkert… the name just sounded and felt right, but the rest of her artwork is different from this – less bold, more soft and pastel, and I was still dubious. But I ordered her collected art, opened the book at random, flicked through a few pages and there she was – my red girl and her tree… found.
