Vignettes

modern abstract sculpture stone

Stone is Forever: A ‘Cuore Rosa’ Valentine

STONE IS FOREVER: A ‘CUORE ROSA’ VALENTINE

 

After Jack and Suzy Welch were married in 2004, the power couple went looking for a sculptural statement to commemorate their bond. Jack, the former CEO of General Electric, first met author and business journalist Suzy (née Wetlaufer) during a 2001 interview — and the highly publicized romance that ensued has stood the tests of time. Nestled within the pair’s private Palm Beach home, Richard’s Cuore Rosa — “red heart” in Italian — stands as a symbol of commitment, grace, and the timelessness of love.

The sweeping curves of Cuore Rosa were hewn from Persian Red Travertine, one of the most seductively colored stones that nature has on offer. Though clearly modeled with the quintessential shape of a heart in mind, the work transforms the simple mark into something dimensional, multivalent, and fluid.

“The work was personal for Jack and Suzy,” Richard recalls of the commission. “Cuore Rosa is a marriage of emotion and material, merging the passion of the red stone and a beating heart with the buoyancy of water for an uplifting, almost bubbly feeling.”

Artist Richard Erdman guides Cuore, a red stone sculpture, as it hangs from a crane, slowly moving towards its installation site.