Living and working in North Devon I am close to the Cornish coast where I find both inspiration and materials.
My subject matter is influenced by the coast, folk lore and an inner response to the materials as they are worked. Pieces of driftwood dictate the way they can be used while the final form of a carving is known only by the wood from which it is carved.
Oak sleepers are a favourite material as the wood is pleasing to carve and weathers to a beautiful silver-grey finish. From these I have been carving ‘guardians’ inspired by post carvings from all around the world. These look great in a garden in groups or individually.
I prefer to use materials that are found or salvaged or acquired from sustainable sources.
When I read, years ago, about woodcarvers in the Swat Valley in Pakistan talking about making columns for their mosques as 'making the wood back into trees' I was moved and inspired. Only now with my driftwood sculptures am I beginning to come close to this. There is something that I connect with very deeply in the fact that I am taking something natural and making it into something that will weather and gradually harmonize once more with the natural environment.
I keep a small stock of work but most is carried out to commission. No two carvings are ever identical and prices are therefore variable but are usually between £300 and £500.
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