Scrimshaw Gallery - Robert Spring

Robert Spring is a well-known contemporary scrimshander, who preferred to tint his scrimwork as two-tone or three-tone polychromes, usually black, sepia, and green or blue.  Spring was a prolific scrimshander, completing about 3,000 individual scrimshawed whale teeth from the late 1960s to the early 1980s.  His scrimworks are highly coveted, and are usually listed in high-end galleries.

This tooth is 5.25-inches & 9.9-ounces.  Artist always signs R. Spring on tooth backside, and dates his work.

This tooth is 4-inches & 5.5-ounces

This is a typical display photo of Robert Spring scrimshaw on a  commercial website.

Sperm whale tooth engraved "SHIP SUSAN" (right) by Robert Spring circa 1970.  Reverse side engraved (above) entitled "A Gam on the Southern Grounds". Signed R.E. SPRING.  5.5-inches long.

"SCHOONER HUNTRESS OF NANTUCKET" (left). Circa 1970, 5.5-inches.

Typical flourish design detail by Robert Spring.

ROBERT E. SPRING was born in Racine, Wisconsin and raised in Florida. In 1956 he attended Ringling School of Art on a scholarship. During the 1960s, Robert turned his attentions towards sculpture and won several prestigious regional awards. Continually evolving as an artist, by 1969 he was working in scrimshaw on a full time basis. His internationally known scrimshaw has been featured in Lesley Linsay's book, Scrimshaw, and in William Gilkersons' book, The Scrimshander. During the 1970s and 80s he became interested in military modeling and won many prizes for his dioramas. By the late 80s, he had returned to water color for the first time since art school. Robert's work is included in the permanent collections of both the Mystic Seaport Museum and the Farnsworth Museum in Rockland, Maine. Robert has participated in many invitational exhibitions, as well as one man and group shows all over New England. He has lived in Rhode Island since 1984 with his wife Isyla.

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