Zebra at the Water

Head lowered, neck arched, muzzle just breaking the surface of a still pool — the quietest moment in the life of a wild animal, when it stops being watchful and simply drinks. This is the zebra at rest, eye closed, stripes flowing from the pointed ear down the curve of the mane. Cut from a single sheet of 2mm steel, the rippling pattern of black and the loose strands of the mane stay connected in one continuous line, reading clearly from across the room.

Laser-cut from low-carbon steel in a Polish workshop. The cutting beam follows each stripe and every ripple in the water with 0.1mm precision — fine enough to hold the narrow gaps of the mane and the concentric circles spreading from the muzzle. Each line is engineered to remain structurally connected to the whole, so the panel arrives as one piece of steel: no welding, no separate parts joined afterward, wall-ready out of the box.

Light gives the stripes their second life. Mounted on standoff spacers 15mm from the wall, ambient light casts a layered shadow behind the steel. The striped pattern doubles — once in metal, once in soft shadow — and shifts as the sun moves through the day, sharper at midday and deeper toward evening. It is a quality flat prints cannot reach, and it changes character with every shift in the room's light.

Four finishes to suit the room: matte black for the cleanest line-art silhouette and the strongest contrast on light walls, matte white for a calmer presence in bright interiors, raw steel with a clear protective coat for a metallic grain that echoes the savanna's warmth, or corten rust for an earthy patina that deepens naturally over weeks and months. Five sizes from S (45 cm) to XXL (130 cm) on the longer side, each scaled to preserve the original proportions. Weight ranges from approximately 1.5 to 8 kg depending on the design. All finishes and sizing details are covered in the craft and delivery guide.

Part of the animals collection. For more in line, see the Cat in Profile or the Perched Chameleon, or browse the full wildlife collection.