Gallery
This is a small collection of some of my works, in Bronze, Glass, and other mediums.
Here you'll find a selection, by no means a complete catalogue, of some of my work over the years.
Kokako Pair
One-off Masterwork in Bronze
Kokako are such an interesting bird. Natives of NZ, they pair for life, and prefer to hop about the forest, as they aren't particularly strong fliers. Their song is flute-like and gentle. Their inspiration in this piece I think is very strong - while there's action, it's unhurried. Not frantic, like so many of it's smaller relatives. Their movement would be almost comical with their hopping, if it wasn't so balanced, so graceful. This work shows the forest of NZ that they prefer so well - jack-vines twining around fallen logs sprouting micro-flora.
Details: Kokako Pair is a one-off commissioned masterwork in Bronze.
Kingfisher Splash
Limited Edition in Cast Bronze, Glass, and Silver
I had the amazing opportunity to do a workshop with the incredible and knowledgeable Di Tocker of Di Tocker Glass, who started my journey in the cast glass medium. When I began to learn about the medium of cast glass, this was the piece I felt I had to do. This is the strongest artwork that comes closest to my passion of capturing a moment in time, a three-dimensional freeze-frame if you will - because of the water. While taking photographs of a native duck in a sanctuary as he splashed under water searching for food, I captured a high-speed photo of the water, which became the driving inspiration for making a splash in some medium, and ultimately the reference I used in creating this work. Finally, the artwork is finished off with a fish in pure silver - because it comes close to the shininess of the small native fish that inhabit New Zealand streams and lakes that the kingfisher love to feed on.
Details: Kingfisher Splash is a limited edition in Cast Bronze and Glass, with fish detail in solid silver. Edition open, commissions available.
Duckling
Limited Edition Cast Bronze and Glass
I spend a lot of time a young bloke on the water kayaking with my family. Overcoming the terror of losing my first serious SLR camera I'd bought for taking my own references, I finally decided it needed to take the risk of submergence if I was to capture photos - and I got some wonderful photos of waterfowl as we paddled around. Ducklings would hesitate as you got nearer, but at a certain point, they'd break and run for cover - and I do mean run! They're little paddling of feet on the water lifted their tiny downy bodies up and it was almost like the would break free and fly if only their little wings were a bit bigger. The Glass on this piece mirrors the dark green of the Rotorua lakes and rivers that we spent so many summers on.
Details: Duckling is a limited edition, lost wax bronze and glass cast. Edition open, numbers available for commission.
Fantail in Flight
One-off Commission
Most of my young life was spent on our family lifestyle block where I was constantly surrounded by wildlife. Apart from escaped horses, pigs and cows that visited from neighbor's farms, we had Kereru, Morepork, Tuis, Silvereyes, and even Kaka sometimes. But I grew an especialy affinity for the Fantails that were constantly there, looking for bugs in the fruit orchards. Fearless and focused, I think they're one of the best flyers in New Zealand - I loved seeing them furing spring when males would have territorial fights that were like minature aerial dogfights - spinning and flitting, using their tails as airbrakes to execute turns on a dime. So it's no wonder when creating this piece I needed to make him in motion!
Details: Faintail in Flight is a one-off commissioned work.
Kingfisher about to dive
Limited Edition of 25 Cast Bronze
Kingfishers have always fascinated me - predator birds always do. There's something about the grace and beauty of a kingfisher, and how the sheen of feathers is fitting to the blue and green waters in which is hunts. This work shows that split second where the kingfisher, riveted by it's target, breaks from flight to dive. While this was the first work of bronze I created, it certainly wasn't the last as you'll see by other kingfisher inspired works.
At the time of creating this piece, I was working on another wax that I planned to be my first bronze artwork - but the arrival of a dead kingfisher placed on our doorstep (a gift from a friend who knew we studied wildlife, rather than a warning from some bird-related gang) inspired me to drop everything and create this piece. The Cast bronze carries the gorgeous natural patinas of bronze, but I also use iridescent oils to pay the due homage to the birds natural plumage.
Details: Kingfisher about to dive is a limited edition cast bronze work. Edition open, numbers available for commission.
Pair of Pukeko Chicks
Limited Edition pair in Cast Bronze
People either love pukeko or hate them - mostly based upon whether the garden has suffered at their hand. Regardless of viewpoint, everyone appreciates the young chicks, and their ridiculously long, lanky legs. I do love the disproportionate legs, topped off with their round puffball bodies. They are clumsy and cute. Every time I look at the finished bronze artwork, I glad that somehow I've managed to capture that fluffiness.
Details: Pair of Pukeko Chicks is a limited edition, sold as a pair. Edition open, commissions available.
Fantail on Fern
One-Off Commission in Cast Bronze
Even the energetic fantail has to perch sometimes - even if it is to look frantically around for it's next target. The Koru are always a favorite of mine due to the significance in Maori culture - representing new life and growth. Each one of my artworks represents my own personal growth as an artist especially - I always learn new techniques and skills, and often create my own tools in order to achieve the effects I create both in the wax and the bronze stages.
Details: Fantail on Fern is a commissioned artwork.
Chrysalis
Limited Edition Cast Glass with Gold
I've always loved observing the process from caterpillar to butterfly - so many of us have as children! We'd sometimes take them in out of the wind, to sit in the house and hatch when ready. There's a gorgeous translucence in the green, and I was always amazed at the gold highlights on them. The green is a very specific type of green too - a vibrant, life-growing green that was so important to capture in the glass. I finished off the cast glass piece with gold leaf on the bumpy nodules around the chrysalis, and done my own homage to in the stand to the various branches and twigs and even man-made objects the caterpillars adhered to for the process. This piece is one of the very rare works where the subject is not life-sized, and has a slight industrial feel to the stand that I think contrasts well with the subject.
Details: Chrysalis is a Limited Edition artwork in Cast Glass. Edition open, commissions available.
Frog and Fern
One-Off Commission in Bronze
Where I grew up there was a good amount of the Green and Golden Bell frogs. We'd find them in my parent's pool, or out an about on rainy nights. Frogs seem to be universally loved- - and this work was commissioned by someone who loved my ferns in bronze, and wanted the frog as an addition that brings life and action to the work. I enjoy creating frogs a lot - and have perfected my own techniques for the micro-detailing on the skin that mimics that rough-yet-smooth feel.
Details: Frog and Fern is a one-off commissioned work.