Reflector

Reflector took its name from Ray Haydon’s stainless steel sculpture of that title, which twists sinuously through space while throwing its surroundings back at the viewer. It was shown with new works in carbon fibre and timber. Seen through the distortion of its fluid form, the environment becomes almost indistinguishable from the sculpture.

Ray’s sculptures are in constant conversation with their environment, and Reflector made that literal: a stainless steel form, polished until it twists through space carrying everything around it on its surface. From the right angle it’s hard to tell where the room ends and the work begins — the environment pours across the curve, distorted by the fluid form.

Around it sat a new series in carbon fibre and timber — the ribbon works, among them Open Helix XII, Manoeuvre V and Curlicue I, carrying the same essence of movement at a scale you could live with.

By then Ray’s work had featured in numerous publications, and his recent public exhibitions included Shapeshifter in Wellington and NZ Sculpture OnShore.