Reviewing your plants

Reviewing Your Plants

Let's look over what beautiful pieces of greenery we have found and visualise them in metal. Even if you can't find these leaves, I'll be detailing some practical considerations for you to keep in mind too.

Plants We Can Use:

Hawthorn - this symmetrical plant can be found in pretty much every hedgerow, but no one ever notices it. I think it's really special, so that's definitely an option for making out of brass.

Field maple - with their symmetrical shape and pretty vein detailing, these leaves will work well in brass.

Ivy - this can be found growing around trees or on walls. It's my absolute favourite plant as all its leaves are so different.

Plants We Can Work Towards

Ferns - despite being really pretty, fern leaves are something to aspire to, I think. They have a lot of detail and the shape might be a bit difficult to make out of brass for our first creation.

Wild honeysuckle - once you're familiar with the techniques, I think this would make a really lovely long vine as the flowers are quite delicate and intricate.

Wild vetch - this woody climber normally has an amazing purple flower. It's really pretty and would make for a delicate brass sculpture.

Tips to Keep in Mind

• Start off simple.
• Study the leaves and take note of the size, shape, veins and structure.
• Pick up a range of different references of your chosen plant. This means you can dissect your plant, trim some leaves off the branch and trace them onto your brass sheet. But you'll also want to have a plant reference intact, so you can study the composition and structure.
• Remember: these are just examples of the leaves that I have found, so you might discover different pieces of foliage. But the same rules apply!

Your Assignment

Head into the great outdoors and study the wonderful world of nature around you by collecting some leaves. Discover what's growing in your garden or in a hedgerow. Note down the details you uncover and where you could display the finished piece in your home.

| Name of leaf | Leaf details & characteristics | Where could you display it |

|--------------|-------------------------------|---------------------------|

| | | |

| | | |

| | | |

| | | |

| | | |

| | | |