Donna Zarbin-Byrne
Banana Bloom (2016)
paper, encaustic, dried banana stalk and flower, soldered brass
24 x 16 x 4 in. | $1,650
I create mixed-media sculptures and installations that define, redefine, and interpret botanical forms in newly imagined ways. I have been called “a gardener of the dreamscape” because my projects are cultivated from nature as well as reverie. Nature may be the starting point, but it catapults into dreamlike abstractions.
The botanically inspired forms include many approaches to methods and materials. I start with a vocabulary of forms, which I collect, cast, fabricate, and assemble. Elements such as seedpods, cast thorns, and hammered bronze are combined into whimsical assemblages. They are made from bronze castings, wire, handmade paper, encaustic, and found objects. I merge the ephemeral, delicate elements from nature with the structure and strength of metal. These also serve as metaphors for our human condition: lives that cycle between strength and fragility.
My art practice is informed by process and the alchemy of transformed substances. As a mixed-media sculptor, I explore many diverse mediums that push my imagination to open up new possibilities. The tactile nature of materials affected by the mark of my hand is an important aspect of my work, especially during this technology-focused age.
© Donna Zarbin-Byrne