Orchid

Myoperum, 21" x 19" x 16"

Santa Clara, CA

Most people have not heard of myoperum; it is a large shrub used in commercial plantings in CA because of its drought resistance. Its natural growth habit is as a clump, like oleander. But if one trunk is selected and the others kept pruned, a tree form can be obtained. The “tree” is allowed to form a crown of branches at about 6 feet high. The log for this sculpture apparently came from such a crown because the typical diameter of a myoperum tree is 10 inches. The base of the sculpture was just below the crown, and the arborists cut off any branches just above it. I tried to retain a sense of the extent of the log with the continuous natural edge while removing the bulkiness by sculpting a flute in the front view with a petal-like structure from the sides and back.