Persea americana

48 x 60” ‡‡ Wood saw / Resin / P. americana

Of all the facets of humankind’s relationship with its planet, few impact day-to-day life with the immediacy of food…yet what we actually eat has never been further removed from what the planet provides. In “Persea americana,” Curran turns a critical eye to this disconnect and the repercussions that ripple outwards from it. For millennia, the tree would have freely provided its fruit and shade to hungry people passing below; now here it stands wounded, stripped of its capacity to grow, valued only as a commodity to be harvested and shipped far away for sale. There is tragedy in the tree’s fate, to be sure, but for Curran the tragedy is in ours as well — a loving relationship has been taken for granted, abused, and lost to our negligence. Whether in matters of the heart or matters of humankind, “Persea americana” reminds us we must remember to cherish and protect what truly matters, lest we cut it down without realizing what will be lost.