Enchanting banana leaf abstraction by Silva Wischeropp

About "Enchanting banana leaf abstraction"

by Silva Wischeropp

About the artwork

I discovered this enchanting natural motif of the leaves of a banana plant in the Botanical Volkspark Blankenfelde-Pankow on 16 October 2018 in the sunny, autumnal afternoon hours. The photo was taken with the NIKON D90 (lens: SIGMA 18.0-50.0 mm f/2.8).
The reduction of the colour tones to classic black and white lends the image a timeless and elegant atmosphere.

Banana leaves are large, simple, whole-edged leaves that are characterised by an elongated or elongated-elliptical shape and are often torn. The leaves consist of a petiole and a leaf blade, which can grow up to three metres long and 60 centimetres wide, depending on the species and variety.
Bananas (Musa), also known as figs of paradise, are a plant genus in the banana family (Musaceae) within the monocotyledon family. The approximately 80 species all originate from tropical to subtropical Asia and the western Pacific region.

Musa species and varieties are evergreen, perennial, herbaceous plants. They have an underground rhizome from which runners sprout. The actual shoot axis remains very short until the flowering period. The "stem" is a non-lignifying pseudostem consisting of solid leaf stalks or leaf sheaths with a true stem in the centre. It grows to a height of at least half a metre, but usually three to ten metres. It can be slightly thickened at the base. The large, simple, whole-margined leaves are rolled in the bud position: As with its sister group, the Strelitziaceae, the foliage leaves show convolute vernation (rolled bud position). They are clearly divided into petiole and leaf blade. The leaf blade is elongated or elongated-elliptical in shape, reaching a length of two to three metres and a width of 30 to 60 centimetres. Older leaves are often torn several times up to the midrib.