National Sculpture Prize

I was very proud to have been selected as one of the ten finalists for the Broomhill National Sculpture Prize, and looking forward to developing my proposal. I intend to use steel and linoleum as my materials and have made initial maquettes out of elastic bands to explore shapes and forms.

Background to my work

The reason for the aesthetic of folds in my sculpture is that it is a progression of earlier work which I have done on a smaller scale on the theme “Folded: Repetition, Distraction, Comfort”.

This theme came from a personal realisation of the comfort that distraction can give at times of stress, illness and grief, that this can offer an escape , time to heal and comfort. For me I needed this during and after my fathers diagnosis and death from bowel cancer and it was this that made me reassess my own life and make the decision to pursue my artistic ambitions and set me on this journey. I wanted to produce a sculpture that represented the journey to heal and recover - the folds are a metaphor for distraction techniques. People can choose to do tasks which range from jigsaws, knitting to distract, or in the extreme self harm or rocking movement - which can become a natural defence - to repress emotions that are unmanageable. The key is that the distraction is most effective if it is repetitive and the fold is my choice to represent that. The number of folds and their variety represents a measure of the journey. The material - linoleum - was chosen for its connection to the domestic and home, and because using it, ‘floor’, in a sculptural way that reaches up underlines the escape that distraction does offer visually lifting you off the floor. For me creativity is my escape. Through this sculpture I want to increase the fluidity and organic qualities to push the inspiration and belief that it can be achieved. The work will fit into the outdoor environment - borrowing aesthetic references from fungal growths.

Broomhill National Sculpture Prize Finalist