Behind the scenes of the metalworking studio

The creation of Mono No Aware

Over the past few days, Arne Quinze has hidden himself again in the metalworking studio to translate his most recent models into life-size sculptures. Lasering, bending, deforming, crumpling, and welding: he applies an arsenal of techniques to render the sophisticated fragility found in nature. Flower leaves and petals have incredible strength and toughness in relation to their size. Our Flora can easily withstand storms, high winds, rain showers and bright sunshine while fulfilling their task of filtering CO2 from the air and welcoming bees and insects to meet their nutritional needs. Yet the ultimate proof of their strength may be their resurrection in the spring after their orchestrated demise in the fall. Magnifying the unsurpassed power of these small specimen should, according to Quinze, make people act more humbly towards nature.

During the past months, Arne Quinze has been studying the transience of nature: “Each year again we are guided by the seasons from germination to decay. This cycle has always inspired me and is at the base of the work that I create. My focus is now targeting the moment that we begin to see the first impermanence. A very poetic moment that has captured the imagination throughout the centuries. Mono No Aware, the awareness of ephemera, will be a series of sculptural work in which I will interpret this phenomenon.”

— Arne Quinze