The past shapes how the present is seen. The trees depicted take on anthropomorphic qualities and build a narrative around familial relationships with titles like ‘Backbone,’ depicting a small tree growing tall and proud with a succession of older trees in infinite progression behind, and ‘Cradle,’ where tree branches hold the sun on a cold spring afternoon. Notions of life and death abound, as in ‘The Other Side,’ a scene of dead tamarack rot-resistant trunks looming out of the Straight River, the skeletons are still physical, lively and full of character. In these works Madeleine seeks to find new life in a place once thought lost, and aims to express that family ties, if strong enough, can live beyond time.