Freedom is a stone sculpture by contemporary British artist Peter Brooke-Ball. This contemporary sculpture is a piece of albaster surrounded by a hanging rope that seems about to cut the stone in half. 

In this work, the artist initiates a visual dialogue between two materials that are very different in their appearance and characteristics. Rope, as if containing the strong pressure exerted by a stone that has become dynamic, transforms the latter into a material that is both supple and malleable, bringing its hardness into question. This alliance is both striking and curious: is it the rope pressing on the stone, or the stone pressing on the rope? This sculpture can be attached and hung vertically. In this respect, the artist confides: “I don’t always see why sculpture should stand on the ground, which is why I frequently hang pieces in trees.”

Without carrying a clear meaningful statement in themselves, Peter Brooke-Ball's works surprise with their humour, simplicity and sensuality. As he himself states, the desire is to create "objects that are gorgeous with a hint of mystery". Sometimes alluding to violence or coercion, the sculptures also question concepts of protection and bond, linked to the artist's idea: "I see each piece as a thought and I want to keep that thought secure and precious, fearing it might all slip away". Although each observer reacts differently with their own interpretation, the titles of sculptures often suggest a concept, a situation or an emotion. Above all, the artist values comments from children, who are free of preconceptions and have a tactile and instinctive relationship to the sculptures.

The work of Peter Brooke-Ball actively connects and compels the coexistence of dissimilar materials that are attached, suspended, surrounded, covered or tied to each other. In his stone and rope sculptures, the artist correlates the physical properties of the materials and works on a paradox that upsets the balance of power between these two elements: "I like the idea of the soft defining the shape of the hard". The contrasting, evocative aesthetic elements of the works of Peter Brooke-Ball contribute to them being highly enigmatic; sometimes troubling and disturbing, sometimes amusing and playful.

Dimensions of the sculpture hung with the rope : 52 H x 21.5 L x 17.5 D cm

This artwork is a unique piece sold with its certificate of authenticity.