Life Force: Sovereignty (2026) is a sculptural work by New Zealand artist John Allen. A dramatically compressed and winding pōhutukawa root from a fallen tree in Northland sleuths around a stone from an Auckland volcano. The stone sets up the composition with its brooding presence: its unyielding strength, dark colour, and overhang. And the root enthusiastically embraces all that, springing forward full of life.
The Life Force works speak to the unseen energy that animates all living things — the deep pulse that unites the visible and invisible, the personal and the universal. It is both what gives form and what moves through it. When a sculpture carries life force well, it creates a subtle but powerful exchange: of presence, aliveness, form and flow as one, simplicity and inner calm.
Sovereignty here is a quiet confidence, not aggression or force. The root moves around the stone without hesitation, following its own line while meeting the stone’s weight and presence. It is bending to the environment whilst doing exactly what it is here to do, fully itself, not imitating or dominating, holding its destined place.
Finished with natural oil and wax.
Specifications:
Title: Life Force: Sovereignty (2026)
Artist: John Allen
Materials: Pōhutukawa root (Northland), volcanic stone (Auckland)
