Violet and Ralph Riegel

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Violet & Ralph Riegel

What inspires your art practice?
With our home being surrounded by miles of native bush, we like to mirror that in our work, using natural materials only. Construction and fabrication items, preferably discarded or upcycled, is our favourite source and inspiration at the same time. To us, the farms, building sites and recycle stations offer an ocean of ideas, each time making for the base of a unique piece.

What materials do you work in?
Wood and steel are our favourite materials.

Describe your artwork for NZ Sculpture OnShore 2021
The Haere Mai gate is an entry point to eternity, expressed through the Koru symbol. To us, a gate is welcoming the traveler, this time visiting a new beginning, a new era and a new world. Having arrived in New Zealand on our sailing boat, traveling is an important part of our history. (The gate can be amended to your personal assembly requirements, i.e. slopes, hinge points, locks.)

Where are the public most likely to see your artworks outside of NZSOS?
Various art inspired gardens, exhibitions and private collections.

Where did you study?
Germany, professional welder