Solar Portal Limited Edition Wall Sculptural Mirror in Bronze by Jesse EdeLimited Edition of 5 Pieces + 1PDimensions: D 5 x W 100 x H 100 cm.Materials: Bronze.The vision for ‘Solar Portal’ was to create a large-scale artefact, reminiscent of ancient Egyptian times. This was a time when people truly worshipped the Sun and measured themselves against its God ‘Ra’, who they believed to be the creator of all things.
 By combining Ede’s signature open cast textured surface with a mirror-polished interior, the artist set out to portray the Sun opening up with a portal that reflects the viewer or worshipper inside it.Born in Cape Town, Jesse Ede is a self-taught designer who favours materials and a process-driven approach to furniture design and sculpture. Working primarily in aluminium, stone, bronze, and brass, he looks to celebrate the rawness of uncontrollable outcomes from processes that are uncommonly used.Ede’s childhood was spent at the workbench of his father, an artist, designer, carpenter, and leather worker, schooling him in a wide array of skills and sparking a deep love for craft. For eight years, he worked as an artisan all around the world, including a long stint as a carpenter for a boat-building company in Antigua. Upon returning to South Africa, he opened a small design and manufacturing studio that provided custom interiors and furniture installations for clients in the commercial sector.Ede’s work is the outcome of a great deal of experimentation with open-cast smelting. He favours exposing and highlighting the organic nature of his mediums – manipulating them to expose the contrast between the material itself and the man-made processes that form them into collectible furniture. He sources his materials himself, visiting local quarries to select a piece of Malmesbury slate or granite – the character of which dictates his final design. Every new project sees him taking on a new design challenge and adding to his repertoire of skills.