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The Dog Cups
Inspired by an Iron Age bronze bowl found at Keshcarrigan, Ireland, these end-grain cups are a play on the original, highly stylised, zoomorphic patterns that are typical of this period in our history. I made the decision to hand-carve, instead of lathe turn, this series of vessels because the wonky, hand-finished shapes and surfaces have an artefactual and ancient quality.
Summer 2022
The Cairns Bowl
In 2020, during the first lockdown, I first became obsessed with the fabulous alder wood bowl that was found during excavations of a broch at The Cairns on Orkney by the University of the Highlands and Islands Archaeology Institute. This artefact was so unique in its form and repairs that I resolved to understand the manufacture and technology of the bowl and mends. In Autumn 2022, I was invited to present my research and information about my reconstructions at Stromness Museum and had the privilege of being allowed to handle and photograph the original artefact.
Spoon Carving
I first began green woodworking in 2015-16 while I was still studying for my Fine Art degree, and it opened up a whole world of craft to me. I became obsessed with woodworking, and resolved to understand as much as I could about the material, tools and possibilities of this fantastically accessible craft. Spoon carving ultimately led me to gain my MSc, lathe turning, archaeological research and many other crafts besides. Many years on I still carve spoons, and occasionally teach.
Detail Carving
The art and archaeology of the Iron Age and early Medieval period in Britain and Ireland is one of my foremost areas of interest and inspiration. I find the intricacy and shapes of the design of these eras totally captivating; they seem to represent a very stylised yet naturally instinctive representation of the world of the cultures that created them. Relief carving these designs into wood in a way of deepening my understanding both of the construction of the pattern and of the mechanical, and aesthetic, properties of wood.