Title: Back in the Saddle
Artist: Rebecca Robinson
Medium and Materials: Hand-carved red raspberry alabaster, an antique hand-forged iron gate hinge, an iron railroad spike, a curly maple block insert, and a polished walnut gallery plinth
Dimensions: 20" H × 9" W × 7.25" D
This commanding, totem-like contemporary sculpture explores the tension between fragile geological beauty and industrial permanence. A cloud-like form carved from pink-veined alabaster rests on a weathered, hand-forged iron gate hinge, which elevates the stone like a precious relic. The composition draws its strength from the balance between organic delicacy, structural weight, and raw physical mass.
Gallery Description
In Back in the Saddle, contemporary artist Rebecca Robinson creates a highly tactile composition within a commanding 20-inch vertical format. The sculpture rises from a substantial square walnut gallery plinth, polished to reveal its rich, dark espresso grain. A small pillar of curly maple is inset into the base and firmly secures a historic, hand-forged iron gate hinge, which extends through the center of the work like a dark architectural spine.
The sculpture’s technical and visual focus is its luminous mineral carving. Balanced on the forked iron support is a substantial form of red raspberry alabaster, carved to emphasize its natural cloud-like contours. Robinson polishes the face to a glassy sheen while preserving irregular, organic edges. Gallery light passes through the stone’s milky-white, cream, and deep raspberry-pink veining, creating a glowing sense of internal energy. An antique iron spike passes horizontally through the center of the stone, securing it to the iron mount. Through precise edge control, careful engineering, and an assured command of material weight, Robinson transforms the vertical composition into a powerful, meditative statement for a fine art collection.
Style and Composition
- Artistic Style: Contemporary material abstraction, kinetic mixed-media realism, and post-industrial assemblage.
- Composition: A vertical, totem-like arrangement organized around the centered iron hinge. The horizontal iron spike stabilizes the composition, while the dense organic stone form crowns the stacked geometric wood bases.
- Focal Point: The high-contrast junction where the dark, light-absorbing iron prongs cradle the glowing white-and-pink contours of the red raspberry alabaster.
- Color Palette: An earthy, complementary spectrum of milky alabaster white, soft cream, and rich raspberry pink, balanced by espresso black, rust amber, honey-blonde maple, and warm walnut brown.
- Lighting and Atmosphere: Direct gallery lighting makes the carved alabaster appear to glow from within and casts soft purple shadows across the wood base, creating a quiet, majestic, and powerful presence.
Materials and Technique
- Carving and Manipulation: Fine-tool reduction, grinding, smoothing, and buffing reveal the liquid-like movement of the alabaster’s natural veining. The treatment preserves the stone’s visual weight while enhancing its crystalline translucency.
- Surface Contrast: The glassy polish of the translucent stone is juxtaposed with the pitted oxidation of the historic hand-forged iron, the satin sheen of honey-colored maple, and the deep gloss of polished walnut.
- Mounting and Engineering: Core-drilled construction and concealed tension rods secure the components to the plinth. This hidden structure preserves the sculpture’s balanced, floating appearance without visible adhesive.
Inventory Status: Available for purchase online or in the gallery.
Shipping / Pickup: Shipping is available securely packaged with professional archival materials, insured, and shipped globally; complimentary local pickup is also available at our 23 North Main Street gallery.
