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A couple of weeks ago I was cycling along the coastline of Normandy and saw a number of newly commissioned memorials. I came away strangely unaffected by any of the sculptures I saw. For me there was not enough mental space left for the viewer to make his or her own interpretations, space that is essential for conjuring thoughts and emotions. Then I saw the remains of the Mulberry harbour at Arromanches. It’s like some great disjointed serpent, its tail snaking back to England. It’s a powerful monument in itself with great sculptural qualities. This one remnant of the battle seemed sufficient to  trigger a range of emotions and responses. I’m not sure we need any more commissioned pieces for tourists to scramble over and pose for selfies.

 

 

My latest piece is in Indian Soapstone. It polishes up like ebony, but the parts that remain unpolished remain a vivid duck-egg blue, so you can achieve some really interesting contrasts and textures. This piece is going to be called “… and Breathe.” It is a head of someone emerging from water (the water which will be represented by a hammered copper sheet). The striations surrounding the head represent more water flowing over it. I really like the chisel marks on the roughed-out striations and am minded not to polish them out.