New Stone Sculpture for Summer Exhibition

A Bowery BirdMy latest stone sculpture, A Bowery Bird, is now showing in the Facing West exhibition in King House, as part of Boyle Arts Festival 2017.  If you are in the North Roscommon area you can call in to see the show which runs until August 18th.  The Arts Festival was opened by Heather Humphreys, Minister for Culture.This new Kilkenny Limestone stone sculpture is part of a collection of work including my small bird sculptures in bronze and stone.In this body of work, the sculptures' central theme is stylised birds, but in each piece the form of a specific bird is closely adhered to, for example Leaf Warbler and Little Dipper and the commissioned Dove on Olive Wood. The original bird is always carved in stone.  In the case of my smaller birds, I also cast bronze versions of these stone sculptures, to create a series of one-off bronze sculptures.Whether in bronze or stone, the birds have a feeling of endurance while at the same time representing a bird's fragility and the notion of life’s transience.I finish the pieces individually, with subtle differences in the shape and with various patination effects.  The sculptures are mounted on wood, bronze or stone bases.I cast my own bronzes in the Leitrim Sculpture Centre, where I also teach bronze and aluminium sandcasting.