Spirit of Cobb & Co
Relief carving by Robert Dunlop, part of dining suite made by Wes Mollenhauer. Photo: Peter Jendra
Robert Dunlop OAM was approaching 90 when he passed away recently, and being a person who lived a life that was true to his beliefs and passions, formed close bonds and friendships with many of the people he worked with.
Robert carved the tabletop shown in these photos, part of The Cedar Spirit of Cobb & Co, a 10-seater dining suite made by Wes Mollenhauer, who lives on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. Wes first met Brisbane designer/maker Robert Dunlop some thirty years ago when he commissioned him to complete part of a project he was working on.
Like Robert, Wes is a craftsman. In the course of his 50 year long working life Wes has specialised in high class carpentry and joinery, making complex architect specified work involving curved staircases, ceilings and the like. There were many jobs the two worked together on and eventually they developed what Wes calls a ‘brotherly’ relationship that endured up until the time of Robert’s death.
The concept for the piece came from tables with carved tops that Wes had seen in South Africa, but he wanted the subject matter to have a local historical relevance. The table has a memorabilia drawer which features images of Wes, Robert and the photo taken in 1988 of the white-painted Cobb & Co coach that Robert modeled his relief carving on. The coach was one of the last built at Charleville in 1915, and ran from Barcaldine to Blackall until 1920. It now resides in the Glasshouse Mountains.
The carving is only 30mm deep, yet Wes marvels at the accuracy and subtlety with which Robert captured the essence of the image; light and shade, proportion, perspective, and even small details like the lady’s hand seen resting on coach window, bring the scene to life.
Each corner of table features a section of an ironbark wheel hub, an actual remnant of the coach. A liquid glass type resin encases the hub segments, and glass sits over the entire tabletop.
Robert Dunlop carved the panel when he was 83 years old and it took him 700 hours to complete over an 18 month period. It’s one of his last works and Wes says that he feels very privileged to have what is now a beautiful and lasting memorial to his friend.
You can read some tributes to Robert Dunlop here.