Computer Painting
Date produced: Original versions in May 2006, then updated March 2008.

Carbon Dioxide, water, nutrients from soil and light are used by the tree in its photosynthesis processes (within its leaves) to produce energy-rich compounds that are used by the tree. A by-product of this same process is oxygen (Attenborough, D., Life on Earth, William Collins and BBC, Glasgow, 1979). Enormous numbers of ancient plants over an extremely long time changed the Earth’s atmosphere from having very little oxygen, to having a reasonably large proportion of oxygen within it (Attenborough, D., Life on Earth, William Collins and BBC, Glasgow, 1979). Animals now require oxygen for their life processes. Without having enormous amounts of photosynthesis within the biosphere to maintain close to current levels of oxygen in the atmosphere, the effect on all animal life (including us, of course) would be catastrophic.

This computer painting tries to show a new (pale blue) gas exiting the tree after the tree ‘consumes’ a yellowy brown gas (carbon dioxide) in the presence of sunlight. The other most important ingredient however is water, which provides the actual oxygen (as a by-product of having the hydrogen used in the photosynthesis processes). I’ve tried to indicate the water in the final version.

The photosynthesis processes involved are then represented in the first horizontal strip below the pictorial image. The second strip represents the way that animals return carbon dioxide from taking in oxygen.

Early Version, using “Colour Overview of the Tree Alone”. Note the application of layers of coloured ‘gases’.

A sun was added, and the layers of gas were developed further. The resulting image’s contrast was then increased dramatically to develop a stronger image, below.

This image was then reflected left to right so that it reads from left to right, rather than from right to left. I also then added a visual description of the processes occurring in the image underneath the resulting image.