#02 Topiary
$150.00
Out of stock
About the Artist
Denise Tarantino
Topiaries hold fond memories for me. I was introduced to the topiary through a friend of my Grandfather, Cosimo La Barbara. Cosimo was a self-taught gardener who could never turn down a hearty bucket of free horse manure. He labored for hours shaping the wire cages used to guide his untutored shears. I thought his creations were more akin to shrubbery or living sculptures than topiary, but regardless of what I thought, he believed he was onto something and always considered himself on the leading edge of the "modern topiary movement" -- as if there were such a thing. He also believed that fences make for good neighbors. However, he couldn't bear to install such an eyesore, so he shaped hedges to act as a fence as well as a diluted form of topiary. He invested hours crafting somewhat geometric boundaries between his property and adjacent homes. His designs were not fanciful topiary, as that depends on patience, a steady hand, and trained shearing. In spite of his attempts to create a
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