Posted 3 years ago
Angus100
(85 items)
This was given to me by a relative of the artist. It is over 100 years old. Skip Trainors family we’re from South Portland, Maine. There is no signature.
14 1/2” x 10
Dried Mushroom Painting | ||
| Folk Art Paintings4 of 267 |  |  |
This isn't a mushroom, although it is a type of fungus, that grows on trees. It's Ganoderma applanatum, also called "artist's fungus" or "conk." It primarily grows on maples, alders, birches, beech, apple, poplars, cherry, plum, oaks, willows, and elm, and will eventually cause the tree to die.
The upper surface is dark reddish-brown to black, with a creamy-white edge. The underside is white to light yellow but turns brown when scratched or bruised, making it a convenient surface to draw on, that folk artists have long taken advantage of.
Thank you so much! I learn so much about these wonderful things from all of you