Artist Statement: The exploration and transformation of material has always been a crucial part of my practice. Growing up in the British countryside, I have always been drawn to nature to source the materials I work with. From this ongoing relationship I have developed my study of wood and its intrinsic qualities, as well as its behavior when acted upon through man-made materials and tools. This juxtaposition, both enhances and transforms the natural beauty of the materials I work with. My aim as an artist is to show off these natural materials and to guide the viewer back to these resources and the meditative power of nature we tap into when confronted by it. The process of making, for example, the selection and seasoning of the wood, as well as working with it, is as important to me as the object itself. This gives me an intimate understanding of each work, allowing me to demonstrate the different ways in which a material can be looked at and used. By burning, carving and casting the wood I create contrasting patterns that highlight and transform its shape and surface. I choose to celebrate the defects created by these actions such as my markings, and expose the ones caused by nature such as knots, cracks and aging. Setting metal into the wood has the potential to create a friction between these two polar materials. Yet, aesthetically, it appears harmonious as a single object. The alchemical quality of this fusion is solidified, for me, by the casting process, in which the metal roots into the wood, similar in which a tree root takes to the soil.
Artist Bio: Born in Macclesfield in 1995, are family then moved to Buckinghamshire where I spent most of my Childhood. I studied at Edinburgh College of Art between 2015 and 2019 gaining a BA (Hons) in Sculpture. During my Studies I completed a micro-residency at Hospitalfields, Arbroath in April 2018 and awarded the Royal Scottish Academy’s Barns-Graham Travel Award in May 2019, which after graduating used it to visit South Korea in September 2019, I will be exhibiting a new body of work in January 2021. I have also exhibited at the Edinburgh Art Fair 2019 as their Graduate in focus and have had a group show in Harrogate and a pop-up exhibition in Mayfair, London. I currently have my first Solo Prestation/Exhibition running this July 2020 at The Scottish Gallery, in Edinburgh.
NEWS: Like everyone else I have been affected by COVID 19. There have been changes made to the exhibition schedule this year and I will keep the website updated as things get clearer. My solo presentation at The Scottish Gallery has been confirmed July 1st - 25th and the Royal Scottish Academy show will is now likely to be held in January 2021 with the exact dates to be confirmed. I am still working and very much looking forward to the end of lock down.