PN2003

Standing light sculpture made of real leaves, steel and zinc in a sleek, polished finish. In Protoplasting Nature, metal and exotic leaves are combined to make opposing processes — life and death, renewal and decay — evident. A load-bearing structure, formed by hand using welded steel, evokes organic shapes and ornate 17th-century furnishings. The abstract, sculptural lampshade is formed by real leaves from the exotic plant Thaumatococcus Daniellii, a rhizomatic herb widely cultivated in central Africa for its exceptionally sweet fruit and useful leaves. The entire sculpture is then coated in zinc using a thermo-coating process, thus permanently encasing the leaves within a thin metal shell.