Author: Tadd Hartland

Deborah is an award-winning contemporary sculptor who specialises in stone.  Her passion for stone carving began in her middle years with a chance encounter at an arts festival. She is now a full-time professional sculptor based in Gloucester. She carves indoor and outdoor pieces from a wide variety of stones. Deborah works together with the stone’s shape, grain and colour until she reaches a kind of skin and the piece takes on a life of its own. Influences on her practice include human and organic forms, social justice and her faith. Her sculptures are a combination of abstract, figurative and prophetic works.
 
This year, Gloucestershire NHS Trust purchased her sculpture called ‘The Hand of Fannie Storr’ to celebrate their first regional director of nurse training. It will be on display at Gloucester Royal. Other works can also be seen at the RWA, SWAc, Delamore Arts and the OXO Gallery on London’s Southbank. 
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Deborah is a founder member of the Cotswold Sculptors Association which after only three years has around 100 members. She is based at Gloucester City works; the site of an old shirt factory where she tutors 3D stone carving courses, for all levels of ability, and works closely with her clients to produce commissions.  

www.debsharrison-sculptor.co.uk 

Michael Lanigan:

“I am a self-taught sculptor with a passion for carving stone, marble being my favourite by far. I was fortunate to have been able to carve marble in Pietrasanta with a group of Dutch sculptors and in the cloisters of the church of St Elena in Venice, a surreal experience. (I have even flown back to the U.K. with 30kg Carrara marble blocks in hand luggage!)

I love the feel of the stone as I work on it, using hand tools only. The rhythmic sound of mallet on chisel and the slowly emerging sculpture give me so much pleasure; pure therapy.
Often I have no idea what I’m about to create when I have a piece of stone before me and I’m quite likely to change direction for what I hope is the better, as the sculpture emerges. I’m happy to carve any stone I can lay my hands on but marble gives me most pleasure.
I work in a small outdoor studio at home in Somerset; there are few places I would rather be.

Stuart Stockwell is a kinetic sculptor based in Cheltenham creates unique sculptures that capture attention and engage the imagination through simple design and movement. They interpret nature’s genius; a balance of complex function and simplistic beauty, inspired by organic forms and sacred geometry. His pieces are multi-layered and deconstructed. They incorporate metals and concrete – materials taken from the earth – and refine them into elegant curves which give them feeling of movement in static rest. All of his pieces create a union between modern design and nature, blending fluidly with their surrounding environment and elements.

Hayley Jones – Wire Sculptor 

Hayley is a self-taught artist who over recent years has evolved from a painter to wire-sculptor. Working in her garden studio which is situated in her very own wildlife garden is the perfect place to create as she takes inspiration from the fauna in the natural world. Wildlife is close to Hayley’s heart. As well as supporting local wildlife rescue centres through her work, Hayley can often be found rescuing toads, newts and hedgehogs on her local patch.

Hayley uses a variety of single strand wires, including copper, steel and aluminium to construct intricate animal and bird forms and then mounts them on to all sorts of interesting found objects, such as old gates, water troughs, weathered driftwood and reclaimed wood which she sources while exploring the local countryside. Sometimes
these objects can be the spark of an idea for a specific piece, other times, the bird or animal is the starting point.

Hayley’s wire sculptures have proved very popular and invitations to exhibit at prestigious events have led to her work being sold both nationally and internationally. She has also exhibited at the Bristol Botanical Gardens and taken part in two events held by Friends of the Garden in Wiltshire and takes part in North Somerset Arts Week and other local exhibitions. For more information…
www.thecoachhousestudio.net