The Holly Boy

The Holly Boy. There was an old custom in some parts of England of the ‘Holly-Boy’, wherein the boys in the village built an effigy of holly known as the ‘Holly-Boy’. It was stolen by the young girls in the village and then burned.
Here is my fantastical and macabre interpretation of the folk tradition. Acrylic on canvas board 8" x 10".
Original by Julie K. Schuler. At My Good Babushka.

The Holly Boy

More work in progress on the Holly Boy.
There used to be an old custom in some parts of England of the ‘Holly-Boy’, wherein the boys in the village built an effigy of holly known as the ‘Holly-Boy’. It was stolen by the young girls in the village and then burned.
Here is my fantastical and macabre interpretation of the folk tradition.
There will be a companion piece called the Ivy Girl, an effigy built of ivy stolen from the girls by the boys, and also burned.

The Holly Boy

There used to be an old custom in some parts of England of the ‘Holly-Boy’, wherein the boys in the village built an effigy of holly known as the ‘Holly-Boy’. It was stolen by the young girls in the village and then burned.
Here is my fantastical and macabre interpretation of the folk tradition