Artwork for Lottie O' Leary
carved welsh slate cores on york stone platter
Christ Carrying the cross, portland stone
Detail of carving
memorial sculpture
York stone memorial
Happy Weekend stone carving students
flock of birds
vessels, mixed British stones
Details
I either work in a very disciplined way, carving memorials to commission, or I work in a freer way carving my own pieces for exhibitions.
For me, my passion lies in the stone itself, where it has come from, and it's about finding the meeting point of my ideas, inspired themselves mainly by the natural world and the stone.
Truthfully, I don't really see myself as an artist, I see myself more as a skilled craftsman. I take inspiration from some amazing collections of carvings that I've worked on as a conservator, a unique opportunity to look at our long history of stone work, and apply that and the skills I've acquired over 40 years of stone work to achieve simple shapes and representations that I think work with the stone at hand.
I am a stone carver, letter cutter and conservator.
My own carvings are often based on some loose themes, nature and the outdoors being constant influences, and I often create collections of similar pieces.
My memorial commissions involve a close connection with the clients, from the initial meeting, to the fixing and completion of the stone.
I also run weekend carving courses through the summer from my workshop here in Knucklas and pop-up carving events at festivals.
Conservation of stone and wood at City and Guilds Art school, Kennington 1982 /1985
Stone masonry at Weymouth Technical college 1989/1990
The Table at Hay autumn 2020
Knighton Fine Art
