Want To Sit Here For A Bit?
$650.00
Artist: Robin McGauley
Medium: Hand-fabricated Sterling Silver
Artist Statement:
“Want to sit here for a bit?” is a sterling silver sculpture of a miniature park bench with a monarch butterfly wing affixed to one side of its backrest and a sprig of cedar with five cedar cones growing from the opposite side. The piece is inspired by walks I have taken with friends in parks and on nature trails. The work distills and holds these cherished simple moments when we often stop and sit for awhile on a bench when the surroundings beckon us to rest. It encapsulates presence and evokes feelings of connection and belonging that arise from spending meaningful time in the natural world. I work in silver, which is a conductive and reflective material that originates in ancient supernova. The slow and meticulous process of hand-fabricating in silver forges a conversation between cherished memories and present-moment awareness. My work carries the memory of skilled presence and listening. The scale of the piece calls attention to human response to smallness and challenges our perception in contemporary culture of what it means to take up space. “Want to sit here for a bit?” reflects on the significance of direct and singular moments that act as seeds in our being which contain potential for future growth.
Artist Biography:
Robin McGauley (b. 1978) is an artist and silversmith living and working in Kitchener, Ontario.
Robin fabricates small sculptures in silver that symbolize the preciousness of life. At the heart of her work is an interest in the wholesome qualities of smallness. In her practice, Robin uses the miniature scale as a metaphor for the inner life and the space where intimate connection is cultivated and known. She is inspired by memories of tender moments in life, often experienced in nature, to create pieces that evoke delight and spark the imagination. Robin’s artistic practice is in constant conversation with her deep spiritual life. As a former minister in The United Church of Canada, her current work expresses this vocational past and explores the recent transition she made to explore a Buddhist path.
Robin studied silversmithing at Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Vancouver Community College and Haliburton School of Art and Design. Her academic background includes a Bachelor of Arts from Queen’s University, a Master of Divinity from Vancouver School of Theology and a post-graduate certificate in Expressive Arts from Haliburton School of Art and Design.
For ten years, Robin was a part-time faculty member at Haliburton School of Art and Design where she taught in the Expressive Arts Certificate program. Robin also taught advanced silversmithing courses at The Studio KW School of Metalsmithing and Design in Kitchener.
Robin’s small-scale silver sculptures have been presented at the Homer Watson Gallery and Cambridge Art Galleries. Her work, “Place for a Picnic”, was recognized with an honourable mention award at the Homer Watson Gallery’s juried exhibition Along the Grand.
