Invitation III: Sina Steiner
With the third edition of Invitation, Root Gallery presents the work of Rotterdam-based artist Sina Steiner.
Working between contemporary art and collectible design, Steiner creates one-of-a-kind sculptural objects from clay. Her works are neither drawings nor paintings, yet they carry a distinctly graphic quality. Curved lines, loops and gestures appear to have been lifted from paper and translated into three-dimensional form.
Opening: 17 July 2026 (Attendance is limited. If you'd like to join us, please email us to reserve a place)
On view from 18 July until 5 September 2026
Each sculpture begins directly in the material. There are no sketches or predetermined outcomes. Instead, Steiner works intuitively, allowing each form to emerge through a dialogue between her hands and the clay. Every piece develops at its own pace, making the process as much a part of the work as the final object.
Although the forms appear light and spontaneous, they are carefully balanced. Some are mounted on the wall, others rest on a surface or balance on the edge of a shelf, where gravity becomes part of the composition. Throughout the day, shifting light creates changing shadows, giving the sculptures a quiet sense of movement.
Colour plays an equally important role. Rather than simply finishing a sculpture, Steiner uses colour to shape its atmosphere. Soft lilacs, vivid blues, fresh yellows and muted greens each alter the way a form is perceived. The colour is never decorative, but inseparable from the sculpture itself.
For Invitation III, Root Gallery presents a focused selection from Steiner's ongoing series Becomings. The presentation brings together works in different scales, creating a rhythm of sculptural gestures that move across the wall. Individual works can stand on their own, while together they form an open composition that invites the eye to wander.
With Invitation, Root Gallery creates space for focused presentations by invited artists alongside its exhibition programme. Rather than a separate exhibition, each edition offers an introduction to a single artistic practice, opening a dialogue with the main exhibition and expanding the conversation within the gallery.
About Sina Steiner
Sina Steiner is the founder of Studio Sina Steiner, based in Rotterdam. Her work exists at the intersection of contemporary art and collectible design, creating one-of-a-kind sculptural objects made entirely by hand.
Clay is central to her practice. Working without sketches or fixed plans, each sculpture develops directly through making, allowing the material itself to guide the process. This intuitive approach results in forms that feel both spontaneous and carefully resolved.
Colour is equally fundamental to her work. Steiner develops her own palette, with her signature blue appearing throughout the series alongside carefully chosen complementary colours. Together, form, colour and light create sculptures that subtly change the atmosphere of a space.
Her works are made to live with people: on walls, shelves and surfaces, where changing daylight continuously alters the way they are experienced. Each sculpture captures a single gesture or movement, transforming a fleeting moment into a lasting object.
Invitation III is on view at Root Gallery from 18 July until 5 September 2026. The available works by Sina Steiner can be viewed online or experienced in person at the gallery during opening hours or by appointment.
