Samantha Mancuso

- Samantha Mancuso
- Acacia
- March 2011
- Plexi glass strips and Aluminum wire
- Size varies depending on how it is displayed

- My inspiration for this piece came from my trip to Tanzania and the Flat Top Acacia trees that are native to the country. I was inspired by the way that the branches twist and turn and look like they are going to grow out and take over whatever is surrounding them. I wanted to mimic the movement of the Acacia branches in a material that contrasted nature but could still maintain a fluid motion. I cut down sheets of plexi glass into various sized strips. Using a heat gun, I molded each strip by hand to mimic the organic lines and motion of the trees. Each strip was held to the next by wrapping aluminum wire around the two ends and eventually creating a small cluster. The aluminum clusters add another element to the piece and mimic the knots of the branches and splits in how they grow. The piece can be displayed various ways, however, draping it over a pedestal allows it to move into the viewers space. The plastic "branches"are placed to look as if they are growing and taking over the pedestal.