Rupert Herring
‘Everyone’s from somewhere else’ 2017
This fascinating body of work was made in Rupert’s workshop on the Kaipara harbour. It’s made from a range of native New Zealand timbers, including 50,000 year-old Swamp Kauri, Rewa rewa, Rimu, Macrocarpa, Pine, Kauri, Cedar and some unknown.
Each chair starts off as a spindle individually turned and crafted on a lathe, sanded, and then painted in heritage colours from the Resene range; as both an architectural, and historical, reference. Each spindle is then quartered, turned inside out, and fixed to a piece of timber which forms the ‘seat’.
The form represents two different styles and aesthetics, being somewhat contemporary on the exterior (square and angular) while harking back to traditional New Zealand colonial shapes on the interior.
The title plays on the individuality of each piece, while nodding to the current global debates around immigration, cultural heritage, and polarising politics around ‘the other’. An object as utilitarian as a chair at once grounds us, and reminds us that
– just like the variations of colour, history and shape evident in these timbers – we are all human, and ultimately all the same.
http://angusdonald.weebly.com/blog/nz-take-1-rupert-and-lou
Feature on ‘Inhabitat’ website.
http://vervemagazine.co.nz/rupert-herring-turning-the-inside-out-2/https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Frupert.herring%2Fposts%2F10155286323702457&width=500
The following images are of the Small show at the Vivian gallery.
High Society. [miniature dining set]
Make shift table and chair.
- Inlayed [rebated] ply on underbelly. It will crack in time but still be fully fictional
- Gitta Gschwendtner, David Nash, & Droog designs were inspirations for the ‘Make Shift’ table and chair
Make Shift because it is literally make shift using what was to had. But also because these pieces show a shift in my making.
- The pieces are meant for indoor or outdoor use, there are some schools of thought that believe if one is to make something outside then it should be used outside. The same goes for something made indoors. This however was made half and half so really seats somewhere between rustic and refined.
- The table top and seat top were cut out using an axe, there is still slight reminisce of the reddish chalk I used to mark it out. This also gives them a slightly playful, child-like feel.
It’s furniture man!
This next images are from a show I did with a friend Melissia Mcmahon at Brendon Adams gallery, Pt Chev.
NZ Onshore Sculpture, indoor gallery. Top and tail. Plywood block sculpture.
Sliding Kauri 4 paneled doors. Commission for client in Omaha area.
The Arrow of time.
At The Vivian gallery, All that glitters exhibition.
This work is part of a series of sculptural compositions created from plywood blocks reclaimed from the roof of an Auckland house. I routed out various grooves and channels at random, cut the plywood sheets into pieces, and fixed the pieces in pairs. The result is many thousands of similar but never identical components, providing a huge variety of surface shapes and intervening spaces to work with.
Images from the show ‘All that glitters is not gold’ The Vivian gallery in Matakana.
Interview in Ponsnoby news
This body of work is about re-appropriating the cultural heritage of materials and objects by challenging preconceived notions of origin and intent. I use multiples of discarded and reclaimed items in designs that establish unexpected patterns. Society’s cast offs are made beautiful through alliteration of form.
Many of the pieces featured here are for sale. They are made here in my workshop in New Zealand, but can be shipped internationally. The materials are all from genuinely sustainable sources, either reclaimed or FCC stamped. I take pride in creating objects to very high standards of overall quality and finish, and I hope their lifetime will far surpass my own.
In the not-so-distant past, objects were used and reused until they were worn out. If something were broken, it could often be repaired or even transformed into something else. The modern ‘disposable society,’ in which individuality counts for little, has largely overwhelmed the art of craftsmanship, while the ‘cult of the new’ leads to shorter and shorter product lifetimes.
I try to create an experience, both for the viewer and myself, transforming the perception of what a material is for, playing with the tension of how it has been altered, seizing the opportunity to change its relevance.
My materials are all in some sense reclaimed. If that fact is sometimes deliberately apparent in my work, it is intended to stir a question in the mind of the viewer rather than to elicit a specific response. I make no political statements; I offer only challenges to preconceptions. The process is concerned with transcending ordinary objects by transforming them into something extraordinary, hopefully in a thought-provoking way.
Industry Zen, Viaduct, Auckland, NZ
Industry Zen, Viaduct, Auckland, NZ
Holliday-Herring 
Love your work Rupert, you have a truely amazing talent, keep up the good work.
Thanks very much Rachael.
Your work is beautiful Rupert as is your way with words 🙂 love it.
Chloe
Cheers Chloe, glad you like like it.
fantastic blog, and your work is amazing
Thank you J’Bolizza!
Great stuff Rupert…and good to see a mention of The New Forest…keep it up, cheers, Richard L
Thanks Richard, yeah still love The New Forest. was good to be back recently for a visit.
Great stuff Rupert keep up the good work!
Thank you, whoever you are..?
(James B)
Your work is stunning Rupert, clean lines and visually beautiful ! What a gift!
Thanks, who ever you are…?
Some lovely original pieces Rupert, you are very talented. Annie
Cheers Annie.
Hi Rupert, Great work! Everything is so amazing and inspiring. Congratulations! Antomar
Ahhh thank you Antomar.
Great work Rupert. Every time I look at your work it inspires me to try something creative with wood… I wish I had the skill to follow through! I am particularly interested in what can be done with reclaimed pallet wood as a lot of it seems to be really nice hardwood. Lewis salvaged some in the summer and we put it through my plainer and it came up really nice. Now I have to dream up a good project or it!
Hi there Tom, thanks very much.
yes indeed some of that hardwood they use can be really good timber, got to look out for nails though.
ive seen some amazing projects done with pallets, from furniture to whole houses. Theres lots of stuff online. hope you are doing well.
great read, great work, GREAT GUY!!!….this is wicked mate gooo for it! :P)
^^^^^^^^From Dai
Ahh cheers Dai, & i certainly will do!
You are going to be massive, just follow your intuition……………………….
Hi Rupert – good to chat to you in the gallery today. I think you have got some great ideas on the boil. Are you familiar with Droog furniture? You might find this link interesting: https://www.droog.com/webshop/products/clock-inlays/ cheers, Jaqui
Hi there Jaquui, yes indeed good to chat with you also. yeah familiar with Droog thanks for the link. intriguing stuff, reminds me of a story i was reading about domestic objects dating back centuries that bear evidence of having been broken and repaired in unusual and often artful ways. as in Japan vassals repaired with liquid gold, a material of course far more precious & valuable than that is the original object. the repair becomes more important or relevant then the thing itself.
I think your work is truly amazing. well done Rupert!
Thank you kindly Tom, glad you like it.
keep up the good work
Thank you and will do!
About time I ‘chipped’ in ….. without wishing to sound prejudiced, I really do think your work is outstandingly good in every way – from concept, design, excellent craftsmanship to finished piece and great photography. Keep creating! MamaX
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Really enjoyed watching you on the design junkies I absolutely loved the bed, did it sell yet? Dead keen on that. I’m very similar on salvaging and reusing repurposing I just dont have the skills to execute like you but will hopefully get better. You certainly inspired me.
Thank you very much Rachel. glad you enjoyed the show. I have a new website now http://www.rupertherring.com do have a look. cheers
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