Awakening

The project stems from the designer’s wish to make direct castings from a collection of natural samples such as leaves, twigs, small pine cones. The casting process reads every feature, the tiniest detail is reproduced in brass and small natural fragments are captured in a permanent material. Once solid, these twigs and flowers have become segments, abstract strokes representing an anthropomorphic volume, a slender ethereal figure. As per the title, the concept of a natural awakening of consciousness underlies the project. Being connected to nature, being nature, being natural—that is why the figure is vaguely abstract, light, composed of thin “energies”, with eyes capable of seeing beauty and a luminous heart.

“What fascinates me most about Alessandro’s work is the lost-wax casting technique, the fact that everything is done using traditional micro-casting, craft processes like these take you back to the past, to handmade production and natural rhythms; for me, a sculptor at heart, it is truly stimulating.” (Marcantonio) 

“The thing that struck me most was to find, in Marcantonio’s works, certain traits, subjects, techniques and media that I have been working with for a long time, which made the collaboration more spontaneous. The project features many natural elements transformed into metal—it certainly requires skill and knowledge to convert organic matter directly into bronze without losing the beauty and wonder that only nature can create.” (Alessandro Valentini)