PEWTER SCULPTURE
My sculptural work is rooted in observation and a connection to the natural world. The ongoing series ‘Home’ and ‘Hidden Botanicals’ explore form and detail, inviting people to pause, look closely, and engage with the quiet intricacies held within each piece.
Pewter sits at the core of my practice. I am always eager to expand my skills and challenge what’s possible with pewter. In 2023, I was honoured to receive a QEST (Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust) scholarship, which enabled me to travel to the U.S. in 2024 for just under a month and study with pewtersmith Logan Woodle, learning techniques not taught in the UK. This experience has had a lasting impact on how I approach my work.
That momentum has continued with the support of an Arts Council England DYCP (Developing Your Creative Practice) award, which has allowed me to further experiment and develop new directions in my practice. Both awards have played a vital role in deepening my connection to the material and refining and developing my sculptural work.
THE HIDDEN BOTANICALS COLLECTION
An exploration of nature and pewter as a medium, preserving and protecting a moment in time. Using leaves, fern fronds and lichen collected from the woodland floor. Each piece pushes the boundaries of pewter, using its intrinsic properties to create one off sculptural pieces.
Through experimentation and play I used this unique process combining botanicals some dried, others preserved in glycerine or such as the lichen left in their natural state with the molten pewter.
What seems impossible, combining molten metal with nature is only achieved because of the pewters unique properties. Its low melting point not only enables me to capture the natural elements within it, but also solder pieces onto it creating an illusion of the natural forms moving through the piece transitioning from organic to metal.
THE HOME SERIES
My current series of work Home started in 2019, exploring the word ‘home’ and what it means, not only to us as humans but also the many insects, mammals, fish and other creatures with which we share our planet.
Home gives us a feeling of belonging no matter whom or what we are, whether it is a nest, house, habitat or ocean. It is a place to feel safe, comfortable, connected or part of a community. A home provides space for an individual to shelter, sleep and eat in relative peace. For families, tribes or colonies it has the added opportunity to communicate and share knowledge. Whatever organism we may be, we all have a place where we feel comfortable – we know it as home.
I reflected on the wildlife around me or that I had seen on travels; like the leaf cutter ants in Peru, marching in a long colourful line, taking back food and materials to their nest, or the honeybee busy in its hive, the shore crab resting in its rock pool.
By magnifying the scale of the literal interpretation, I wanted to invite the observer to look closer, reflect on the behaviour and contemplate what may be the essence of home to that organism.
Pewter lies at the heart of all my work and over the years I have enjoyed not only mastering the skills and techniques involved, but also testing its abilities and challenging its creative potential. Home also gives me the opportunity to combine the metal with other materials such as concrete, experimenting and using the same processes of mould-making, casting and polishing to produce a harmonious fusion of the two materials.
You can buy my sculptures here.
