The Sardine School
The Linear Vector
Fluid mechanics translated into structural transit — a singular biological vector constructed from hundreds of individual components.
Graphite · Vertical
Sparkling graphite infusion — the sardine’s silver flash held in the resin. Climbing toward the light.
Placed
Verdigris · Horizontal
Copper and bronze with genuine oxidised verdigris — the running school in transit along the wall.
Placed
Description
The Sardine School records the hydrodynamic alignment of a migrating mass. Conceived specifically for transitional architecture — the corridor, the stairwell, the longitudinal wall — it does not anchor a room; it directs it, introducing a continuous line of momentum that scales with the physical dimensions of the space.
The single panel acts as the foundational unit. Engineered to expand incrementally, the modules tile along horizontal or vertical axes to establish a current of any length. Run horizontally, it establishes transit; rigged vertically, it creates a structural ascent or descent.
The surface is fused directly into the matrix. The graphite variation embeds structural silver powder directly into the resin body, while the verdigris variation relies on genuine copper and bronze oxidation. The material itself is the finish. Fluid mechanics locked into a structural vector — momentum engineered to direct the space.
Specification
- Medium
- Hand-modelled water-based acrylic resin
- System
- Scalable linear modules — base panel 410 × 160 mm (≈ 16 × 6 in)
- Graphite
- Sparkling graphite infusion locked into the resin
- Verdigris
- Copper and bronze with genuine oxidation
- Edition
- Open commission system based on architectural scale
- Status
- Initial two variations placed · New schools available by commission
Process — The Linear System
Each sardine hand-sculpted in clay — no two alike, each given its own head, eye, and taper.
Silicone negatives taken; cast in water-based acrylic resin.
Graphite path: sparkling graphite powder infused. Verdigris path: copper and bronze with genuine oxidation.
Fish laid onto the panel — the many agreeing into one form.
Panel rigged for the wall — as a single unit, or composed panel by panel into a current.
Full process documentation is maintained in the studio archive.
Provenance
- Artist
- Ché Hough (Cape Town)
- Studio
- Cape Cache, Pearly Beach, Western Cape
- Field research
- 139,500 nautical miles at sea
- Execution
- 2025 — Pearly Beach Studio
- Authentication
- Certificate of Authenticity issued by Cape Cache for each commissioned configuration
Related in This Typology
Sagax — The Bait Ball
The companion study — the same collective body, two states. Sagax compresses the school into a sphere under threat; The Sardine School releases it into transit along the wall.
View the work →Both existing schools are placed. A new school, in either finish, is available by commission — as a single panel, or composed panel by panel into a current to the scale of your wall.
Commission Enquiries