Vigil, a charcoal drawing by Rob Harris of two adult springboks protecting their young

Vigil

Wild Hearts. Springboks.

Charcoal on French cotton paper
160 × 113 cm

Original enquiries

A charcoal drawing by Rob Harris Art of two adult springboks protecting their young

Protection is instinctive

Two adult springboks gather around their young, their bodies forming a protective structure.

Nothing has been drawn to create the heart.

It emerges from the relationship between them.

The adults face inward.

The young remain within.

Protection becomes form.

Angled image of charcoal drawing by Rob Harris of Springboks

Sculptural Presence

Charcoal becomes volume.

Though created entirely through drawing, Vigil is conceived as a physical form.

The bodies overlap, fold and hold one another, creating a sense of mass and volume across the paper.

The horns extend outward, creating a natural boundary.

Light gives the forms weight.

Shadow gives them depth.

The drawing begins to feel less like an image of four springboks and more like a single protective presence.

Close view of Vigil, a sculptural charcoal drawing of springboks by Rob Harris Art

Scale

160 × 113 cm

Wild Hearts originals are created at museum scale so the work can be encountered rather than simply viewed.

At full size, the relationship between the animals becomes physical.

The drawing occupies space.

The scale creates presence.

Vigil charcoal artwork by Rob Harris shown at museum scale

Look closer

At distance, Vigil resolves into one quiet form.

Closer, the surface breaks apart into fur, horn, texture, shadow and individual charcoal marks.

The work rewards time.

What first appears simple becomes increasingly intricate the longer it is seen.

Close-up of springbok fur, horn, texture and charcoal marks in Rob Harris’s Vigil

The Material

Charcoal on French cotton paper

Vigil is drawn on museum-grade French cotton paper selected for its ability to hold fine marks, subtle tonal transitions and the density of charcoal required to build the forms.

The white of the paper remains visible throughout the work.

It is not background.

It is part of the composition.

French cotton paper used for Rob Harris’s Vigil charcoal drawing

The Original

Vigil

Unique original
160 × 113 cm
Charcoal on French cotton paper
Signed by Rob Harris & Georgia Harris

Original enquiries

Original Vigil charcoal artwork by Rob Harris and Georgia Harris

Limited Edition

A strictly limited edition of Vigil is available for collectors who wish to own the work without acquiring the unique original.

Each edition is produced on museum-grade paper, signed and numbered by both artists, and accompanied by collector documentation.

View editions

Limited edition of Vigil charcoal artwork by Rob Harris Art

Wild Hearts

Vigil is one work within an evolving series of fifteen.

Each work explores a different expression of connection, protection and belonging through the physical relationship between animals.

Explore Wild Hearts

Six completed drawings together from the Wild Hearts series