Frank Murphy
Sceilg Dining Table, 2026
Irish Oak
136 H x 220 W x 115 D cm (tabletop height is 76 cm)
53.5 H x 86.6 W x 45.3 D in (tabletop height is 29.9 inches)
250kg
53.5 H x 86.6 W x 45.3 D in (tabletop height is 29.9 inches)
250kg
Further images
Description
This piece was developed in response to my interest in the dramatic Cork and Kerry coastline which has intrigued me since childhood. The landscape appears full of movement and drama and yet is so defiantly peaceful. It is easy to get lost in the endlessly shifting shapes of the timeless landscape. Islands like the Skelligs appear as a ferocious drama which has reached a climactic equilibrium now locked for eternity. I find this moment of achieving balance among the chaos to be deeply inspiring. These islands were once inhabited my monastic monks looking to find the most remote outcrops imaginable to get closer to god; it makes sense that they chose these precarious rocks, cast out in the Atlantic Ocean to find this serenity. The Sceilg Dining Table sits 8 people. It is made from Irish oak sourced locally to my studio. The table top is a single slab of oak from a wind blown tree from a castle estate in county Cork. The 300 years old tree is full of intricate grain patterns and distinctive flecking which flow through the wood. The base is fumed, stained black in places and finished with wax oil. The top is finished with natural oil. The process of making this table is one of building a rough shape and then gradually removing material to reveal an eroded formation. Each action of cutting and carving, changes to entire composition until I feel that some sort of equilibrium is achieved. The reached balance of the cantilevered top suspends the table in time. Creating multifaceted surfaces allows light and shadows to inform what the viewer experiences. I try to create structures that accentuate this experience so that new possibilities of shapes emerge with changing conditions. The delicate movement of light can profoundly alter the form as one facet becomes lighter, another retreats into shadow. With sharp lines, this threshold is crossed in an instant. Our relationship with furniture pieces is a very intimate and tactile one; it composes the domestic landscapes in which we live and is animated by the daily movement of light traveling through the space.Join our mailing list
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