Bronze & wood
400 x 133 x 15 cm / 2024 / Private client, Bristol
4 metres wide, Avon captures the view of Bristol's topography from above, as bronze, water & wood meet in a form of interactive, sculptural mapping, questioning our position in the city’s rapidly changing landscape. Drawing inspiration from the importance of water to Bristol’s history, the curvature of the edges is formed from sections of the river which flow beyond the outskirts of the city, overlaid here; a blending of landscapes seen and unseen as the city expands & evolves.
A technically highly complex artwork to create, Avon pushes the overlaps of analogue and digital sculpture, combining the best of the ancient and cutting edge - traditional casting & carving with contemporary technological effects & processes. By using genuine topographical data, the landscape is captured authentically as a moment in time.
The river Avon itself was a far more ambitious prospect as I wanted to sculpt with water itself, rather than cast from a representation of it. By using simulated physics, a version of the river that fully captured the dynamic sense of multidirectional movement was created. Using 3D print, this was then converted to bronze via traditional lost wax casting, a blend of elements that in its finished golden polish gleams in sunlight, just as light catches the edges of a wave or flowing water.