Rockspinner 6 Unveiling and Artist Reception at a new leaf gallery | sculpturesite May 28, 2011

a new leaf gallery | sculpturesite at Cornerstone Sonoma is pleased to announce the unveiling of renowned sculptor Zachary Coffin's Rockspinner 6 on Saturday, May 28 from 3-5pm. An interview with the artist by gallery owner Brigitte Micmacker and reception will follow the ceremony.

Zachary Coffin's interactive Rockspinner series of multi-ton granite boulders that can be spun by a small child provokes questions about the fundamentals of momentum and gravity.

To create each piece, Coffin locates the precise center of gravity of a magnificent boulder that has been quarried near Atlanta, Georgia. Using cranes and industrial tools, the boulder is drilled, inset with a low-friction bearing, and installed atop a minimalist stainless steel shaft. The resulting ten-foot sculpture can be set into motion by the push of a hand, and continues its silent, smooth rotation for a surprising length of time thanks to an ultra-lightweight lubricant on the bearing.

"Everyone has experienced a well-built machine that seems able to function effortlessly, and a poorly made one that either works badly or breaks immediately, " says Coffin. "Though it looks raw and simple, the only reason it works is because I have found the precise center of balance of the stone, the bearing is precisely level and my bearings and shafts are both accurately concentric and able to resist deflection from the load. If these criteria are not met, the sculpture simply becomes what one would expect: a large, immovable rock."

Rockspinner 6 is the latest addition to SculptureWALK, a changing exhibit of over 60 large-scale sculptures located throughout the nine-acre gardens at Cornerstone Sonoma. Rockspinner 6 was included in the 2008 exhibition Sculpture in Motion at the Atlanta Botanical Garden, curated by Brigitte Micmacker, the owner of a new leaf gallery | sculpturesite and is for sale.

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