A mask is not only a disguise. In many cultures, it stands instead for a connection to the spirit world, whether it is worn to fend off demons or to make contact with them and ask for their help. Barnickel’s masks could be both: spectres guarding against frost and other rigours that could plague the garden, or garden spirits casting their gaze benevolently over the green, growing things. With their two different aspects, though, there is one thing they are for certain: cheerful and colourful, as a garden inhabitant should be.

Edition in bronze, cast using the lost wax technique, chased and patinated by hand.