Most people ask the same questions about my work. . . .
if you find after reading this that there are still questions you would like to ask you may email me
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Where do you find the material for your wood sculpture and do you do much wood carving? |
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My assistant collects drift wood for me from the Devon coast and estuaries and local estates supply oak. Sometimes people bring interesting pieces that they think might be useful for a driftwood artist. I do as little carving as possible preferring to retain the original texture. |
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How do you fix the bits of wood together? |
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By whatever method works. Each sculpture is different and can sometimes call for innovative means of construction, it is part of the fascination and why my interest in this way of working continues. The larger sculptures have a steel frame coated with fibreglass that gives a roughened surface which both disguises the steel and stops the wood from slipping when it is first held in position for me to see. It is then tied with wire until I am sure it is right before being screwed together with stainless steel screws. The screw heads are then covered with filler and stain. |
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What are the hooves made from? |
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Recycled copper and sometimes lead. |
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I would like a horse sculpture for my garden, can they go outside and how long do they last? |
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Yes, most of the life-size pieces are made from oak; they are then treated with preservative to prevent insect attack. I recommend that they be sprayed annually as one would a garden fence. I cannot say exactly how long they will last but there are still Elizabethan timber frame houses standing. Driftwood pieces may not last so long but I have found that using a waterproof New Zealand horse rug during very wet weather helps a lot to lengthen their life, I have some that are now twelve years old and still in sound condition. Bronze of course will last for many centuries. |
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Where did you get the idea to make driftwood art? |
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Like most ideas it came out of the blue and was an accident. |
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Do you ever make anything you don’t want to sell? |
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Yes, there are a few that I will never sell. |
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Who buys your work and do you sell art online? |
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My clients come from many different cultures but essentially they are all interested in contemporary art. A lot buy small bronze horses as gifts or larger sculptures in either bronze or oak to integrate into their landscape design or sculpture trail. There is a long tradition of sculpture and statues in large estates, almost every european town has several life-size bronze horses and increasingly there is interest in 3D art for hotel complexes and in wall reliefs for restaurants. I never imagined that anyone would buy original art through an online art gallery but to my astonishment nearly all of my sculpture now sells online. |
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Do you make any else apart from horses? |
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Yes. I make other figurative art and site-specific constructions. I particularly like landscape design and works that have both an aesthetic and a function. A lot of my relaxation comes from working within my sculpture garden and landscape where I almost exclusively use recycled materials from long habit. I despise waste and will always look to see how things can be reused before thinking about buying new except for tools. As a result my sculpture garden is now featured in the NGS YELLOW BOOK. |
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Do you fit the idea to the material or the material to the idea? |
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Both. I love problem solving and working with recycled materials therefore comes very naturally. |
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Do you make small models to start with or drawings? |
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Both yes and no, depending on the material. Small models are are sculptures in themselves. In some cases I prefer to let sculpture grow organically, in others I may follow a drawing to some degree. When I am working with an idea to cast in bronze I tend to do more drawings. |
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What materials do you like working with most, bronze or wood? How do you bronze a driftwood sculpture |
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Different things at different times, my best work often comes when my creativity is stretched. New challenges, experiments, possibilities and ideas are what keep me alive.. |
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Why did you decide to become an equestrian artist and how old were you? |
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Love of horses and about three years old. My favourite book was Black Beauty and I was fascinated by wildlife and animal art in general, I loved the drawings in The Jungle Book. |
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What inspires you? |
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In essence it is a one-word answer. Life. |
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How long does it take you to make a horse sculpture? |
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How long is a piece of string? I have several pieces on the go at the same time so if I get stuck on one I can work on another and often that is how I find the solution to the problem. I have had some that have taken three years and others that have only taken a month but I do not log the hours it takes, that is not what interests me, it is only how well can I make them that concerns me. |
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