About the Artist

Artist Statement

Growing up in the Scottish east coast village of Gullane I spent my childhood playing on the beach or in the waves. The sea confronts us with its powerful, vast presence and captivates us with its enigmatic beauty. My work is inspired by this mercurial element and explores the broad range of themes it evokes.

The Sea Swimmers aim to capture the essence of being immersed in this invigorating entity both literally and figuratively with the sea being a metaphor for all of life’s experiences. Themes of struggle, joy, fear, freedom, sensuality, and spirituality are expressed through form, texture and figurative allusion.

I had a constant need to draw, paint and craft as a child and when I was introduced to sculpture in 1^st year at Art College I felt an immediate affinity with it as a creative medium. I graduated from Edinburgh University and College of Art with an MA in Fine Art in 1986 and have continued my practice since then working from my home studio in rural Aberdeenshire.

I continually return to bronze as it provides the versatility and variety of form, texture, intricate detail, patina and lustre I need to convey feeling and narrative in my work. I find it inherently alluring and tactile.

Artist CV

Born 1962 Edinburgh

Education and Training

1986 - Graduate Enterprise Post Graduate Business Programme

1986 - John Kinross Scholarship to travel and study the arts in Italy

1986 - Graduated with an MA Fine Art, Edinburgh College of Art and Edinburgh University specialising in Sculpture, History of Art and Philosophy of Art.

Workshops and Training Courses

2018 - Mokuhanga printmaking workshop at Barn Arts, Banchory

2012 - Weekend workshop in Screen Printing at Peacock, Aberdeen

2010 - 2014 - Member of printmaking group Aboyne

2010 - Weekend workshop in glass blowing at Glassstorm,Tain

2010 - Weekend workshop in Lafarge Cement Modelling at ESW

Commissions

2017 - Ms.Connolly – bronze foot for a podiatrist’s retirement

2016 - Mr.Mclauchlan – bronze hand for a pianists 21^st gift

2016 - Mrs and Mrs Edwards, copper 3x4 m wall sculpture

2015 - Mrs and Mrs Wardman, bronze portrait of border terrier

2012 - Mrs Smith, bronze abstract shell form

2012 - Mr and Mrs Sim, bronze abstract shell form

2011 - Mr Burnett, bronze figures based on their Heraldic Crest

2010 - Mrs Burnett, clay gargoyle portrait head of Mr. Burnett to be mounted on water fountain in Spanish Villa as a water spout

Creative Projects

2018 - Co-tutor with Eden Jolly senior technician at SSW at a Cuttlefish Casting Workshop for Braemar Creative Arts Festival

2014 - Initiated and Curated “Bronze “an exhibition of 80 bronze sculptors from the UK and Europe whist I was Assistant Manager of the Milton Art Gallery, Banchory. This included a sequential, annotated photographic exhibition explaining the casting process that I had developed over the course of a year at SSW during a casting project.

2008 - 2009 – Designed and tutored a bespoke drawing skills course for a secondary school pupil with special needs who wanted to build a portfolio to apply for college.

1992 - Art Tutor for The Independent Painters Workshop delivering “Creativity Workshop”, Life drawing classes and Art History seminars.