I am a sculptor working in mixed media, primarily clay and glass.
Seventies science fiction influenced the shapes I create in my work. As a kid I was drawn to the ancient futurism of Tatooine, so alien to the brick boxes of a rural English hometown. I loved its primitive rounded form, both ancient and modern.
My interests have since included the architectural work of futuristic architects such as Paolo Soleri and Claude Costy, who created dwellings that were integral to their natural surroundings, both from an ecological and aesthetic standpoint, making them less invasive and more connected.
My work draws as much from NASA as it does from old adobe dwellings: primitive totems and imaginary space stations inspire my work in equal measure.
In my current series, SPACEBLOOM, I explore how our past connects with the distant future. Sci Fi movies where space travel seemed hopeful and adventurous now seem to be less of a choice and more of an escape for survival. In this work, solid, simple shapes in clay, reminiscent of aged space stations, docking doors and hatches with flower crowns create glass gardens blooming into dark skies. Changing with the light, the glass shapes are sometimes skeletal, sometimes cloudy or shining brightly, full of color. The work, like a planet, changes as the light revolves.
The use of clay in SPACEBLOOM represents the strength of the earth, our ingenuity and resilience while the glass refers to our vulnerability. Glass, typically a fragile material is reinforced, color and clear glass fused together, while the flowers reach out, supported by the ceramic base. The glass represents how our fragility can possess extraordinary beauty, emanating light.
My interest lies in what we fear our future will be. Will we be able to in preserve and protect what we currently treasure in our natural world? In this work, I hope to remind the viewer how fragile our present is, how our frayed alliances affect all of us and how we can develop strength and a future in connection.