Having always been interested in art I first studied under Med Snookes at Hanley Castle High School and later I did a foundation course at Hereford.
Torn between two choices, Sculpture and Design I chose what was thought to be the safer career choice and studied 3 Dimensional Design (woods, metals and plastics) at Bristol Polytechnic, leading to a BA (Hons) degree.
After a few years working as an Interior designer in Bristol and London I finally went freelance and taught myself Computer Aided Design skills and set up a business producing 3D animated presentations for designers and corporate interior design companies. After a successful period the business grew to include web design, product visualisation and architectural fly through animations. All work involving intense computer work and no hands on actual 3D work.
It was this lack of hands on (making things) that helped to convince me to revert back to an old desire I once had to produce sculpture.
And it was after the untimely death of my younger sister that a “Change in direction” finally happened and I started carving stone.
Later I rented studio space in Stockport and became a member of the VMA (Vernon Mill Artists) - this gave me the space and artistic environment that I needed to develop my skills and I exhibited my work along side 40 other resident artists gaining positive reviews and encouragement from other artists and the public.
I relocated back to Malvern in 2006 and after trying to split my work time in a delicate balance of Sculpture and Freelance computer work I finally gave up the computer stuff early in 2008.
I now have a studio in Clevelode near Callow end where I spend much of my creative time carving and developing casting techniques using resin and fill powders such as slate, bronze and iron.
My preferred sculpture technique is direct carving, whether in stone or wood I prefer not to do too much preliminary design or maquette work and enjoy the process of carving itself and like to let the form evolve from the material and dictate its own final appearance.
I like to keep a generalised theme, choosing something usually from nature and will attempt to evoke a positive emotion from the viewer. The tactile features of carved and polished stone make my sculptures a must to touch and feel and I would welcome comments from blind or partially sighted people.
