Transitional Works
These works mark a period of transition towards the materials and processes that now characterise my sculptural practice. Combining altered domestic objects, found materials and early experiments with extruded silicone, they explore bodily associations, playful ambiguity and the transformation of familiar forms.
Pet (This)
Ash and Sepele wood, silicone dog toys, grooming and dog leads, silicone childrens toys, synthetic wool, pipe cleaners, felt pads, scrubbing brush bristles, acrylic fluorescent paint, stainless steel cupboard handles, neck chains and fixings, 2022
65cm w x 26cm d x 70cm h
Pet (This) takes the loose form of a dog, assembled from wood, found silicone objects and everyday materials. Its title is both an invitation and an instruction, encouraging the viewer to touch, explore and interact with the sculpture.
Combining familiar pet accessories with contrasting textures and details, the work plays with the conventions of looking but not touching. Built-in handles allow it to be picked up and repositioned, extending the physical encounter beyond its surface appearance.
Groundworks
Land-slipped tarmac, silicone sealant, 2020-21
Various sizes
Groundworks was made using fragments of tarmac from a recent local beach cliff collapse and brings together displaced man-made material and densely extruded silicone sealant.
The silicone forms appear to push beneath, emerge from and spill over the broken tarmac, others are compressed against the tarmac or arranged across its surface.
Presented as a shelf installation of a pseudo-geological collection of specimens, they mark an early exploration of the material behaviours and sculptural possibilities of extruded silicone.
Play Things
Oak, sepele and lime woods, stainless steel round bar and chains, silicone elements, synthetic wool, pipe cleaner and cable clips, various stainless steel fixings, acrylic paint, uv varnish, 2022
Base 40cm x 30cm x 5cm h
Play Things brings together brightly coloured found silicone, wood, metal and assorted tactile materials in a collection of abstract forms. Mounted on zigzagging steel posts and tethered by chains, the individual pieces can be repositioned, rotated and rearranged into different compositions.
Fluorescent silicone tubing, fuzzy pipe cleaners and dangling tassels give the forms a playful, toy-like quality without settling into recognisable identities. The work invites ongoing rearrangement rather than remaining in a fixed configuration.
Cave
Glass jelly moulds, silicone sealant, enamel paint, stainless steel armatures, dipped rubber, foam, Jesmonite, wire, lace, fishing line weights, chalk stones, led lighting, 2021
Cave was a grotto-like installation created in an alcove within my home, incorporating chalk stone, found materials and various developed sculptural elements.
Upturned glass jelly moulds, internally painted in shades of pink and red, were assembled with upward-pointing extrusions of matt white silicone around their rims, perhaps suggesting marine organisms or elaborate confectionery. These were arranged amongst chalk stones, suspended lace and plaster-hardened foam, alongside angular metal rods tipped with dipped rubber grips.
Combining organic and manufactured forms, the installation transformed the alcove into an ambiguous, cave-or rock pool-like environment.
Bored, Ironing
Sea-worn ash plank, stainless steel box section, plus the artwork ‘Dangle Iron’, 2019.
Bored, Ironing presented the familiar equipment of domestic labour as a playful but deliberately awkward sculptural encounter. A sea-worn ash plank formed the ironing surface, supported by a purpose-built steel frame, while a split piece of cedar became an improvised iron.
Fitted with a handle and ball castors, the iron could be moved across the board by visitors. Lengths of ball chain pass through drilled holes recalling those on the underside of a steam iron, with brightly coloured silicone tips and washers beneath restricting how far the iron could travel or be lifted. The work invited participation, while quietly frustrating the expectations of an otherwise familiar household task.
Children
Sleepers, fence paint, vinyl decals, stainless steel handles, ball chain, jubilee clips, rubber bungs, hinges, 2022.
Arranged across a lawn, Children comprises four figures in three groupings, loosely corresponding to a teenager, two toddlers and a baby lying on its back.
Constructed from cut and assembled timber sleepers, the figures combine painted and varnished surfaces with brightly coloured vinyl shapes. Hinged sections fitted with stainless steel handles can be swung open or closed, while lengths of ball chain terminate in rubber bungs that fit into circular recesses in the wood.
The familiar proportions of the figures contrast with their angular construction and ambiguous functional details, suggesting both domestic objects and bodies without fully resolving into either.