2022
Wood, soil, glass. feathers, aluminum, brass, acrylic.
Lamps made from branches of the Twisted Hazel (Corylus avellana
Contorta) and parrot feathers (Psittacula krameri, also known as the Ring-necked Parakeet). The branches and feathers were collected at the Palestro Gardens in Milan. Both belong to the family of terrestrial creatures mutated by environmental changes. The hazel tree starts out with a straight trunk, but over time it curls and knots, a mutation that highlights the reaction of a victim to external agents. The Ring-necked Parakeet is native to the tropical and subtropical areas of sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, but since years, following human error, it has been colonizing European parks and forests.
The geometry and dimensions of each lamp follow the natural shape
of the hazel branches. The electrical, functional part is inserted into the grooves created inside the branches. The feathers, a contaminant, maintain the balance of the suspension between two worlds.
Famiglia combines the natural and the technological, where the cable, a synthetic element, burrows into the branches to find a new home, the branch guides the cable to the ends where the LEDs are located, enclosed in glass straws. In this balance between natural and synthetic, contamination remains, the contaminants being the feathers and the wood itself. The feathers are collected in Milan's parks and belong to the ring-necked parakeet, an alien species introduced in the 1970s and now widespread throughout Europe. This species is responsible for the destruction of the habitat of native bird species as well as fruit crops. The second element is the hazelnut, a plant domesticated for about 10,000 years that has developed a mutation that causes some of its cells to stiffen. The tension created between rigid and elastic cells causes the branches to curl and knot spontaneously. Pruning techniques developed to accentuate this characteristic are based solely on aesthetics and not on the health of the plant.
The feathers and their colors and the geometry of the wood are two characteristics that can be associated with the impact of man.
Contorta) and parrot feathers (Psittacula krameri, also known as the Ring-necked Parakeet). The branches and feathers were collected at the Palestro Gardens in Milan. Both belong to the family of terrestrial creatures mutated by environmental changes. The hazel tree starts out with a straight trunk, but over time it curls and knots, a mutation that highlights the reaction of a victim to external agents. The Ring-necked Parakeet is native to the tropical and subtropical areas of sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, but since years, following human error, it has been colonizing European parks and forests.
The geometry and dimensions of each lamp follow the natural shape
of the hazel branches. The electrical, functional part is inserted into the grooves created inside the branches. The feathers, a contaminant, maintain the balance of the suspension between two worlds.
Famiglia combines the natural and the technological, where the cable, a synthetic element, burrows into the branches to find a new home, the branch guides the cable to the ends where the LEDs are located, enclosed in glass straws. In this balance between natural and synthetic, contamination remains, the contaminants being the feathers and the wood itself. The feathers are collected in Milan's parks and belong to the ring-necked parakeet, an alien species introduced in the 1970s and now widespread throughout Europe. This species is responsible for the destruction of the habitat of native bird species as well as fruit crops. The second element is the hazelnut, a plant domesticated for about 10,000 years that has developed a mutation that causes some of its cells to stiffen. The tension created between rigid and elastic cells causes the branches to curl and knot spontaneously. Pruning techniques developed to accentuate this characteristic are based solely on aesthetics and not on the health of the plant.
The feathers and their colors and the geometry of the wood are two characteristics that can be associated with the impact of man.
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