INNER HEART, side table

by Julio Martinez Barnetche, Mexico, 2014

SIZE: W 58 x D 50 x H 70 cm // W 22.83 x D 19.69 x H 27.56 in
MATERIAL: Mamey Wood and stainless steel. Direct carving and hand-forged steel. Salvaged wood.

Sculptural side table from the series by the artist called Shi Ho. A beautiful piece of salvaged Mamey wood that is nearly black, combined with hand-forged steel. Martinez is a prolific sculptor of precious and semi-precious stones, wood and metals, working between sculpture, furniture and objects. His work has an overwhelming strength and is developed with a masterly approach to the use of materials and techniques. He often takes his raw materials as he encounters them naturally and does not intervene too much, especially in the case of stones and wood. He never cuts a tree, he finds the wood in nature, in the garden of friends or at architectural salvage sites. The series ‘Shi Ho’ is a furniture series created in 2014. ‘Shi Ho’ is a word from the Mazateco language, from the area of Oaxaca, meaning a 'union'. An essential aspect of the ‘Shi Ho’ collection is its unique approach to combining soft and hard, natural and man-made materials to create contrasting sensations. Shi Ho relies on a variety of origins, types and methods of handling and combining wood, stone and metal. There is a spiritual side to the entire creative process.