Table No. 15Industrial Mixed Media Art - Ash, Metal, Coal & Gears - Xabier Liz

Original artwork on wood 17x7.5 cm featuring ash, metal, coal and gears. Contemporary textured art. Industrial memory and emotional archaeology.

Addition and subtraction: natural and industrial memory

The surface is constructed by adding and subtracting layers of ash and pigments, creating a dense and vibrant geological terrain. The ash—a residue that is both end and beginning—serves as an expressive base upon which the other elements are articulated.

The metal, gears, and hand-forged iron nail introduce an industrial and artisanal memory that contrasts with the organic nature of the ash and charcoal. The nail, created using traditional forging techniques, bears the marks of handwork and fire. The gears, removed from their mechanical function, are reinterpreted as sculptural elements that bear the marks of time, wear, and obsolescence.

The dialogue between the natural, the industrial, and the artisanal articulates a reflection on cycles, transformation, and permanence. Each material retains its specific memory: the fire of the forge, mechanical movement, organic combustion.

Vertical format and sculptural presence

The vertical format (17 x 7.5 cm) creates a compositional tension that emphasizes verticality and the accumulation of layers. The reliefs and depressions create an emotional topography that reacts to the light and changes according to the viewing angle.

A piece of concentrated character and coherent discourse, inscribed in the tradition of material informalism where the active surface becomes an interior geography, an intimate landscape without defined perimeters.

Technical details

• Unique, handmade piece
• Dimensions: 17 x 7.5 cm
• Materials: wood, ash, pigments, metal, charcoal, gears, hand-forged iron nail
• Signed by the artist

Xabier Liz (Santiago de Compostela, 1971) develops a visual language where matter is both origin and meaning. Influenced by Leopoldo Nóvoa and traditional African art, his works are exercises in emotional archaeology intended for collectors who value formal research and material intensity.