{"product_id":"an-unofficial-rose-for-st-christopher","title":"An Unofficial Rose for St Christopher","description":"\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn Unofficial Rose for St Christopher\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1994\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBronze, edition of 6\u003cbr\u003eCast by Ken Cook\u003cbr\u003eSigned McDonald\u003cbr\u003e80 × 63 × 55 cm\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eAn Unofficial Rose for St Christopher\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e is one of Stephanie McDonald’s most elaborate coloured bronze flower sculptures of the mid-1990s. A branching arrangement of large white flowers rises from a tall turquoise-green vase, the stems, leaves and vessel unified by richly varied green patination.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003eAlthough recognisably a vase of flowers, the sculpture moves beyond conventional still life. The flowers spread outwards and upwards into space, each bloom individually modelled and deliberately irregular. Their curling petals retain the evidence of hand modelling, giving the bronze an immediacy and fragility that works against the permanence and weight of the material.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003eColour is fundamental to the sculpture. The pale flowers appear almost startling against the saturated turquoise-green stems and vase. The coloured patination, developed in collaboration with founder Ken Cook, allows separate parts of the bronze to retain distinct identities while remaining part of a single sculptural structure.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003eThe work belongs to a period in which McDonald repeatedly transformed familiar motifs from painting, domestic still life and the natural world into three-dimensional objects. Flowers, fruit, vessels and other ordinary things become enlarged and physically assertive, while retaining the irregular surfaces of the original modelling.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003eThe title, \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eAn Unofficial Rose for St Christopher\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e, introduces a more elusive literary and devotional dimension. Rather than functioning simply as botanical description, it turns the bouquet into an offering: something poised between still life, memorial and emblem.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eExhibition history\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1994\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCoventry Gallery, Sydney, Australia.\u003cbr\u003eIncluded in Stephanie McDonald’s solo sculpture exhibition; the work is visible in surviving installation photography.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1995\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDelaney Galleries, Perth, Western Australia.\u003cbr\u003eIncluded in the artist’s exhibition and documented in surviving installation photographs.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1996\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003eChristine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne, Australia.\u003cbr\u003eSolo exhibition. A contemporary Art + Australia listing records Stephanie McDonald (Burns) at Christine Abrahams Gallery. The exhibition was accompanied by a catalogue with an essay by John McDonald.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCollections and provenance\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003eBronze edition of 6.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eI\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e — recorded\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eII\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e — recorded in the artist’s ledger\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eIII\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e — recorded\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eIV\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e — recorded\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eV\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e — recorded\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eVI\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e — sold through Christine Abrahams Gallery, $10,000\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCollections and provenance\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eA cast of \u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eAn Unofficial Rose for St Christopher\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e has a particularly well-documented history. A 2025 auction catalogue records provenance through \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCoventry Gallery, Sydney; Delaney Galleries, Perth; and Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e, followed by later exhibition at \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCharles Hewitt Gallery, Sydney\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e, and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eOrion Sculpture Park, Yass\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eAnother cast entered the collection of \u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eGold Coast City Art Gallery, Queensland\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eThis history places the work firmly within the sequence of major Australian exhibitions through which Stephanie McDonald’s coloured bronzes were shown during the 1990s and subsequently displayed in public and private collections.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eLiterature\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1994\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDavid Matthews, catalogue essay, Coventry Gallery, Sydney.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1995\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDavid Bromfield, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe West Australian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e1996\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJohn McDonald, catalogue essay accompanying Stephanie McDonald’s exhibition at Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eArchival record\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003eThe artist’s ledger records bronze casting costs of £3,400, with an earlier figure of £3,000 plus freight, and a mould cost of £1,850.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p2\"\u003eA later bronze inventory records the work as \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eAn Unofficial Rose: For St Christopher\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s2\"\u003e, dated 1995 and measuring 80 × 68 × 60 cm. The artist’s original ledger records the work as 1994 and 80 × 63 × 55 cm; the ledger measurements and date are used here.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Stephanie Fuller Gallery","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41326537834568,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0277\/9312\/9577\/files\/IMG_6803.jpg?v=1787577623","url":"https:\/\/stephaniefullergallery.com\/products\/an-unofficial-rose-for-st-christopher","provider":"Stephanie Fuller Gallery","version":"1.0","type":"link"}