Victoria Shezi

Statement

This artwork is designed to inform and engage viewers of all ages to "spot the Fibonacci spiral". Be amazed by the result! As one looks closer, out of place objects that are destroying the natural environment appear. This mixed media collage juxtaposes life and death; the ancient and the modern; people and places; land and sea. An ammonite fossil marks "The Cradle of Mankind". Vibrant African wax print designs depict the intuitive golden spiral in the psyche of contemporary designers, representing here the curve of a wave breaking on the shore. The hardy succulents speak of African tenacity flourishing in harsh conditions as well as climate change induced drought.The paper nautilus begins an imaginary spiral shape of perfect Africa.

Artworks

This submission is a response to a personal awakening to the beauty and perfection of mathematics and its occurrence in nature. The well-known Fibonacci sequence, attributed to Leonardo Pisano Bigollo produces a spiral shape when arcs are extended through the corners of the corresponding squares.This shape appears throughout nature: the growth rate of certain shells, the phyllotaxis of succulents, the pattern of sunflower seeds. The work has layers of symbolism and meaning. The shape of the continent is reinforced with strips cut from rubber sandal; symbolising the interconnectedness of the globe and the tons sandals retched from the sea onto African beaches annually. All objects were collected in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa.