Samuel Adentwi Bentum
Aesthetics and Appreciation of Tree Trunks and Branches into Sketches and Sculptures introduces a way of seeing and experiencing art. For centuries, artists have relied on nature as their great source of inspiration. Tree trunks and branches are comparable natural sculpturing materials that are worthy of adoration and adoption. Nature, in this sense, directs the liberation of the images within these tree trunks and branches.The concept, upon which these aesthetics and appreciations were deduced, was based on the philosophy of truth which presents the materials, their sources and physical appearances as the basis of these sculptures. Therefore, the need to preserve and present the material was as crucial as the artistry.The style of these collections centered on simplified realism that clinches on plain geometric shapes and forms. Carving technique was at times interspersed with the tree bark texture, surface defects and marks from chain saw and machete. Titles of the sculptures were derived from the Akan-Fante culture and offered their English versions.Hence, the dignity of the African culture is clearly and solidly established through the form and imagery created from these tree trunks and branches. 3
