(Photo: RichardBH)
Skipping stones along a lake--it's one of the little joys and challenges of childhood. Can you get the flat rock to skim along the surface? How many times can you make it bounce?
Usually people search for and throw appropriate stones that they find on site at the lake. But if you're a cut above the ordinary riff raff, then you deserve the luxury skimming stone by Dominic Wilcox. This artist, whose work we've featured extensively, has a gift for creating offbeat versions of ordinary products and experiences. It's a flat rock covered with 24 karat gold leaf and fits inside a bespoke belt-mounted pouch.
The stone is a comment on preciousness of time. Wilcox wrote this lovely short short story to accompany it:
He knew the moment had arrived at last, the stars had aligned, the perfect balance of stillness and silence were upon him. He stood facing the shimmering lake and felt a calmness descend. After thirty four years, two month and twenty two days of waiting and searching he unbuckled his leather pouch and gently slid out the golden skimming stone. The stone had sat in the pouch patiently awaiting its time, its reason for existence. He held the stone delicately in his throwing hand and carefully wrapped his index finger along its glimmering edge. His mind started to race with doubt: ‘Will I skim it perfectly, the way it deserves after all this wait? What if I throw it wrongly and it just sinks?’. He looked at the stone and it gleamed back at him in such a beautiful way that it was as though the stone was speaking to him. He felt calm again, stretched back his arm, took a deep breath, made a wish and threw the golden stone with all his might at the water’s surface.
-via Dornob