Palm bark

Scope: Portraits

In Marja's Caribbean garden there are, among other vegetation, some beautiful palm trees; one of the perks of living in Curaçao. Although tropical, and thus not subject to the harsh winter of more temperate regions, palm trees do occasionally lose a leaf.  As befits her artistic mind, the most common objects transform themselves into artistic possibilities. So it happens that in two thousand seventien she began working with the lower part of some of these fallen bark.

By soaking this part of the leaf in water, it becomes malleable.  Once malleable, she then molds it in the desired shape by using weights, such as books, or iron cord. If it then dries in the newly molded shape, the new shape will be fixed. After this procedure, it is ready to be painted or otherwise be reworked or be combined with other parts, to, eventually, be put on a stand, or be elegantly hung by a cord.

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