This
large work became the culmination of my MA studies where I explored more intimately
the relationships of the pieces to one another.
Although all this large work is
now in private collections two pieces can be seen in the Sculpture Garden
at Booth House Gallery.
Taking
a material that is familiar to us all on a domestic scale and confronting the
view with large vessels made of clay raised both ethical and technical challenges
for me. The larger pieces with the marks and traces on the vessels which had
their roots in archaeology and the early rock paintings of the Nabatean civilisations
I had witnessed in the remote areas of the Arabian Desert began to reverberate
with more personal and self referential symbols.
It was also at this time that I
began to consider the idea of the 'Stella' a single column with power and
strength that became a focus of thoughts, a source of energy or place of worship
for ancient and modern civilisations. Our reverence for tall constructions
has been well documented from the Pyramids to the recent intense symbolism
of the Twin Towers in New York.
Having
the luxury of both time and space to develop a series of ideas and subsequent
work saw an increase in scale, ambition and intention of the pieces. Initially
my early explorations led me into small installations using large timbers as
a frame work to construct a foundation for the pieces. The notion of relationships
family friends perceptions opinions gossip and personal judgements began to
take place in the elaborate work. I also explored the idea of the arch, a door
an opening, a cathartic state in the work at this time. I considered a number
of artists and Anthony Caro's 'Trojan Horse' series together with the work of
Janis Kounellis were both influential.
Working
at Bretton Hall College on my M.A. in 1996/97 gave me the opportunity to completely
evaluate my position as an artist and teacher. Richard Bell
with his quiet friendship and incisive questioning proved to be a source of
inspiration that I am still drawing on to the present day.
