Tree of Life
Date:
2013
Ref:
5570
Materials:
Bronze, Murano hand blown glass
Dimensions:
135 x 55 x 65 cm
Catalogued:
Glasstress: White Light White Heat, catalogue 55th Venice Biennale, 2013
Exhibition history:
2013 Palazzo Franchetti, Glasstress, 55th Venice Biennale, Italy; The Wallace Collection London, UK
Courtesy:
Private Collection
The Tree of Life is a bronze sculpture formed from an olive branch, a symbol traditionally associated with peace, resilience, and continuity. Grafted onto the branch are hand-blown glass flowers, enlarged beyond their natural scale to draw attention to both the diversity and fragility of plant life in an era marked by accelerating biodiversity loss.
Informed by expeditions to the Amazon rainforest undertaken in collaboration with scientists, the work draws on an extensive photographic archive of plant species assembled by the artists. Produced with maestro Danilo Zanella at Berengo Studio, Murano, Venice, the sculpture reflects Lucy + Jorge Orta’s ongoing engagement with material transformation, craft knowledge, and ecological inquiry.