Lace, but not as we know it

Jacarandas were imported from South America – the name apparently comes from a local Brazilian language and means “fragrant” – to many tropical and sub-tropical regions in the world. In October in Zimbabwe the trees flower in abundance, casting a blue-purple tint against the sky. It is a real sight to see.

Over in Australia the trees are regarded in a similar fashion. It was this that inspired artist Paula Hart to use them as a motif in an artwork to adorn a local building. The piece was commissioned by Woolworths, the supermarket and grocery chain, and was designed in the Netherlands by the artist, who worked with a process that mimics bobbin lace in wire fencing. Each panel of the lace wire work was designed differently and the result of 60 craftsmen working for ten weeks in Bangalore with those designs is a beautiful mural of hummingbirds and jacaranda flowers dancing across the façade of the building. Definitely lace but not the lace we are familiar with!