Alexandra Cicorschi
Growing up in Romania during the last years of its communist regime, I internalized at an early age how limited resources can fuel creative reuse. When in need, people reach out for help, forming communities, offering support — and almost nothing gets discarded in this cycle. Some of my earliest memories are of my family’s repurposing, fixing and repairing household items. Replacing something that was broken was a luxury very few could afford. An object’s story didn’t always end after its first life cycle had been exhausted.
I started working with salvaged wood when I came across discarded construction slabs with over 400 rings in their grain. I was struck by the idea that people regarded something this old and beautiful as trash. As I find, strip and re-mill wood, the strips I create become my brushstrokes. Small movements inside wood grains influence large movements in the compositions. Continuity is at the base of creation because everything evolves from something. Where we decide to start our story is just the act of deciding what segment to focus on.
The majority of the salvaged material I use in my work comes from local demolished houses. By using a hotel room as my exhibiting space, I would create a dialog between two different aesthetics — old and modern. A narrative of open angles and fluid gestures inside a contained space defined by 90 degree angles. An invitation to remember that so much of our urban environment — our doors, desks, buildings — come from nature. The juxtaposition would create an opportunity for the organic origins to exist in the foreground and remind us of their playfulness.
For more information about the artist, please visit her website.