A Valley Oak and Acorns in a New Mural in Woodland, California

A new oak-themed mural beautifies an old brick wall in downtown Woodland, California. The artwork, commissioned in part by the Woodland Tree Foundation, features a mature Quercus lobata (valley oak), under which a California scrub jay (Aphelocoma californica) caches an acorn that is already sprouting a vigorous network of roots.

The image also includes a basket that the Patwin Native Americans, the area’s first inhabitants, used to collect acorns, next to a mortar and pestle used to grind them up. Acorns were a main food for the Patwin, who used them for making mush after grinding them into meal and mixing the meal with water. The mush was cooked in a basket by putting hot stones in the basket with the mush.

The mural is the work of Sacramento-based artists Shaun Burner and Franceska (Frankie) Gamez. You can see another mural they collaborated on here.

Their other work does not usually feature oaks or acorns, but the concept for the Woodland mural clearly owes a lot to the input of David Wilkinson, President of the Woodland Tree Foundation, who initiated the project and wished it to depict Woodland’s history, environment, and culture.

The wall on which the mural was painted was once part of the Farmers and Merchants bank, demolished in 1970. It was an interior wall and so unsuited to withstand exposure to the elements; nevertheless it remained standing for the past 53 years—until now an eyesore on Woodland’s Main Street. Prior to receiving the mural, the wall had to be renovated by removing chipping plaster and old wood, replacing soft and degrading bricks, and re-grouting where necessary.

A consortium of over 20 public and private donors underwrote the cost of the project. For a list of the contributors and for a detailed account of the project, see Carlos Guerrero’s article in Woodland’s Daily Democrat: “New mural in downtown Woodland now finished”.

Photos courtesy Woodland Tree Foundation unless specified.