For my NY6 Think Tank Project, I chose to create a leaf sculpture with a highly detailed vascular system. My goal is to bring this structural layout to the forefront of the viewers’ attention. The leaf will demonstrate nature’s ability to choose paths in space and time. In some sense, it is a cognitive process that the leaf undergoes as it expands outward. Similarly, all of mankind, from its earliest recorded history, is founded upon these same fundamental actions. We all choose paths to travel down. This intrinsic part of life is a linkage to all of mankind, but also something that transcends mankind. It is a ubiquitous property found in every corner of nature. The goal of the installation is to make this clear.

This project supports the NY6 Think Tank mission because the Arts and Humanities are able to express individual aspects of the human experience and create a timeless linkage to the rest of the mankind. Similarly, this installation’s goal is evoke a basic principle of humanity that is present in every era of human existence.

The leaf will be roughly 6 feet tall and four feet wide. Using birch and oak plywood the leaf will be sculpted with a water jet machine, which uses a high-pressured stream of water to cut materials like glass, metal and wood. A prototype leaf was created using a laser cutter, which cut the exact design for the actual sculpture out of a cardboard box. The first step in creating the sculpture was to cut the silhouette of the leaf so that the more intricate leaf can be mounted to the silhouette and ensure structural integrity. The next step in the process is to cut the intricate leaf. This is a challenge because it is such a detailed design. The actual cutting of the wood will take upwards of 6 hours.