TIFFANY SHLAIN

"My late father, author and surgeon Dr. Leonard Shlain, believed that flowers are one of the reasons humans developed bigger brains—–- we were attracted to the fruit, whose nutrients allowed for rapid brain expansion and bigger thoughts. My father explored this idea in his book on Leonardo da Vinci, and when the editor wanted to remove that chapter I was crushed, but I thought: I will do something else with this idea. This piece of wood seemed perfect for that—it looks both like a cross-section of brain tissue, and a flower."