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| "Borders": junk collage |
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Miniature Wood Shingles - Mesmerizing Arrangements
Configured by Wycliffe Stutchbury
“Always in my mind is the desire to describe the landscape of the human body and the country,” says artist Wycliffe Stutchbury, whose elegant compositions are intimately tied to nature and a sense of place. He creates handmade wood shingles made from a range of sources like bog oak, holly, and ash, arranging the pieces into elemental compositions.
 “Hundred Foot Drain 15,” excavated bog oak, 180 x 80 centimeters, Chatteris, Cambridgeshire |
“I work with wood because it is full of surprises, and it is a miraculous material,” Stutchbury tells Colossal. “Its character, texture, fragility, robustness, and the way in which it records the passing of time… I really just see myself as an editor of nature.”
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| Detail of “The Craig” |
Stutchbury was formally trained as a furniture maker, and when he graduated from university, he focused on making what he calls “miniature realities,” or very precise models of everyday things, which he exhibited in large, white spaces. After university, he moved into a studio with some fellow graduates. The artist realized he needed to put the nose to the grindstone and began to gravitate back to woodworking.
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| “Holme Fen 3,” handsawn excavated bog oak tiles hung on cotton twill, 330 x 228 centimeters |
“One day, I was walking home and the neighbour’s house was being re-roofed,” the artist says. “The builders had left the old roofing battens in the front garden, and I asked if I could take them away. The rain and sun and time had produced these wonderful colours on the timber.”
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| “The Rodd,” discarded barn cladding, Prestigne, Powys 127 x 79 centimeters |
Stutchbury follows where the work takes him. “Although I strive to apply my own structure to these works through concentration and technical skill, I fail,” he says, adding:
I make mistakes, my concentration wanders, I change my mind, (and) I can’t maintain a straight line or a perfect sphere. I find I am being pulled toward an intuitive way of working, like stacking firewood. So, I allow the timber I have before me to lead the way, and through a process of editing, I try and reveal the qualities and narrative held within it.
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| “The Hill 10,” felled common holly, 180 x 90 centimeters, Abergavenny, Monmouthshire |
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| Detail of “The Craig” |
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| “Hundred Foot Drain 9,” excavated bog oak, 100 x 150 centimeters, Chatteris, Cambridgeshire |
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| “Oakhill Park,” felled ash tree, 93 x 88 centimeters, Oakhill House, Hildenborough, Kent |
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| “Hundred Foot Drain 9” in progress |
The artist has been busy with commissions, including a trip in May to Maine—a region rich with Shingle Style architecture—where he will clad one elevation of a house on the coast. Explore more on the artist’s website
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| Cheer Pheasant |
Tuesday's Smiles ...
2 comments:
Jacki, I guess you all count the days until October 4 and are looking forward to this great event. How exciting. .
I love what Wycliffe Stutchbury does with wood. Just wonderful.
Thank you Elenor, yes I am sure the time will go quickly. Raquel's has two jobs, the second is a wedding planner, so she is supreme organized.
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