Cities on Instagram: Andrea Gandini is breathing new life into the ancient city’s many decapitated tree trunks

You may not know his face or name, but if you’ve visited Rome recently, chances are you may have seen his work.

Sculptor Andrea Gandini, 22, is transforming tree stumps around the city by carving faces into them. In the last four years he has made 65 such sculptures in the capital as part of his Troncomorto (“dead trunk”) project, documenting his creations on his Instagram account.

Gandini chose to carve faces because he believes they help elicit empathy and respect from passersby towards the tree stumps. “They respect the tree is also an individual,” he says. He tries to imagine what kind of face the tree would have if it was a person: “I try to find a face that’s right for that particular tree.”

A lack of upkeep means the city’s streets have many diseased trees. “There was a big gap of five to 10 years where the trees were not taken care of properly,” says Gandini. “So there are a lot of ill trees that have to be cut down because no one took care of them. The city now has a lot of tree stumps.”

Not everyone appreciates his work, however. Recently he says he was about to start carving a stump near the Colosseum when police stopped him, citing a new law that is tackling illegal street trading outside tourist sights. They threatened to ban him from the area for a year if they catch him there again. Nevertheless, he is undeterred: “They’re dead trees, so they’re not the property of the city. I have the moral right to do it.”

Gandini has created a map on his website with the locations of the sculptures. Tour guides have started to include them on street art tours.

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