Driving Force
Nature and the interconnection between all forms of life are at the heart of my work. The natural world provides an unlimited supply of inspiration. When I take the time to study some aspect of nature such as a shell, seed pod or rock formation, it’s surprising to me how often they suggest an idea for a sculpture. They may have a very sculptural form, or I may find a compelling textural detail or like the way two forms intersect or relate. It’s hard to be bored when there is so much happening in the landscape all around.
Henry Moore expresses his fascination with the natural landscape so well in the introduction to John Hedgecoe’s book:
“Landscape has been for me one of the sources of this energy [that I have put into my work]. It is generally thought that no sculptor is much interested in landscape, but is only concerned with the solid, immediate form of the human figure or animals. For myself, I have always been very interested in landscape. (I can never read on a train – I have to look out of the window in case I miss something.) As well as landscape views and cloud formations, I find that all natural forms are a source of unending interest – tree trunks, the growth of branches from the trunk, each finding its individual air-space, the texture and variety of grasses, the shape of shells, of pebbles, etc. The whole of Nature is an endless demonstration of shape and form, and it surprises me when artists try to escape from this. Not to look at and to use Nature in one’s work is unnatural to me.”
