Untitled 

Giuseppe Penone carved this untitled work from a mature tree trunk, revealing within it the form of a sapling. The tree, a universal symbol of life, growth, and interconnectedness, here embodies a duality – the old containing the young, the future held within the past. This resonates deeply with ancient myths of rebirth, and the cyclical nature of time, similar to the ouroboros, the snake eating its own tail. Consider the image of the tree in ancient Egyptian art, often associated with the Tree of Life, symbolizing immortality and cosmic order, or in Norse mythology, where Yggdrasil connects the nine worlds. These symbols have a strange, deathless afterlife. In Penone's sculpture, this primeval symbol resurfaces, stripped down to its essence, inviting us to contemplate our own place within the ever-turning wheel of existence. We respond to it viscerally, sensing our own history of growth.