Introducing a unique pair of Alex Roskin‘s High Back Bar Chair, a bold new addition to his Tusk Series, designed exclusively for a special commission. These bar chairs take on a refined yet dynamic presence, with a higher back height that aligns with Roskin’s standard dining chair design, offering added comfort and support while maintaining the sculptural elegance that defines his work.

Alex Roskins Tusk Series reflects his penchant for an animality in form. The versatile chairs and stools can be used as a salon chair, a desk chair, a bar stool, or grouped for a dining set. Each features a mammalian physicality, hand-sculpted and cast in aluminum.  The aluminum front legs extend from the chair’s body in a bowed fashion while the back legs are hand carved, rendering each chair unique.

Roskin’s works blend functional design with modernist sculptural references. A natural successor of innovative artists such as Richard Serra, Jean Arp, and Constantin Brancusi, Roskin’s cast bronze, stainless steel, and carved wood works reflects the artist’s modernist and primitive influences. Beginning with a series of quick sketches, Roskin captures the movement of a basic form. By sculpting in foam and wood Roskin translates that movement into a structural model that is then 3D scanned so that it can then be cast in bronze, aluminum or steel, and finished with carved wood elements. His works often feature a mammalian physicality with heaving sinuous forms and legs that extend from the body in a bowed fashion.

Rejecting outright anthropomorphic mimicry in favor of subtle, sculpted muscular forms, Roskin notes: “I try with each piece to create a stance and a presence, some with more contrapposto. I aim to give each piece a feeling it is inhaling or ready to make a move. I try to steer clear of the decorative, but rather to draw on mass, volume, line, negative space, and my love of materials and the craft of working with them.”

While Roskin‘s works are known for exotic skin upholstery—from alligator to eel—these stools take a slightly different direction, featuring luxurious Pierre Frey upholstery in a rich jacquard pattern. The stunning wool blend in shades of brown, grey, and cream offers a sophisticated optical illusion of curves, paying tribute to the Bauhaus movement and adding a modern, tactile element to the design.

At Todd Merrill Studio, we take pride in working directly with artists like Roskin to customize every detail—ensuring that each piece not only reflects the artist’s vision but also fits perfectly within the context of the client’s space. Through our close collaboration with expert upholsterers, we bring these bold designs to life, creating bespoke works that are both functional and timelessly artistic.