Description
Ceramic sculpture
Limited edition 7/250 ceramic sculpture by Paul Smith
Colours may vary slightly.
Collect from gallery £165
Including UK delivery £185
H 15.5 x W 8 x D 3 cm
Dream-like sculptures in a bold, semi-abstract style, inspired by stories of our relationship with the animal world.
This is magical art, pure, humorous and strong.
Sister Wendy Beckett, Art Critic
‘I am a full time artist, making ceramic figurative sculptures in my studio on the edge of the Peak District National Park. The images I make are dream-like and contemplative, designed to create a feeling of a reality where peaceful co-existence is possible between us and nature. The style is bold and semi-abstract with graceful sweeping curves and simplified details.
In my work I play with the conventions of fairy tales and fables, often turning the stories on their heads and twisting them. Goldilocks has made peace with the bears and Red Riding Hood has grown up to be a confident femme fatale who entrances the Wolf. There are many ‘first-nation’ stories of a time when beasts could talk and the world was one, not divided into the human/animal worlds.
I am interested in our perception of the animal kingdom, told through fairytale and fable, art, books and film, rather than realistic depiction. A big influence on my work has been Angela Carter who wrote several short stories and novels on the theme of fairy tales, “The Company of Wolves” and “The Bloody Chamber” being among the most famous. She tells tales of transformation, wonder and strangeness but, however dark the stories are, there is, more often than not, a redemptive ending. I use children’s stories as the vehicle to explore, in terms of adult-oriented concerns, the universal themes raised; love and jealousy, duplicity and trust.’
