Biography

I was born in Bishop’s Stortford in 1961. I studied at Wimbledon School of Art (1980-83) where I gained a First Class Honours degree in Fine Art. MA studies followed at Chelsea School of Art (1983-84) and I received a Henry Moore Bursary to study at the Royal College of Art (1985-87).

While still a student I was invited to make a sculpture for the National Garden Festival 1986 in Stoke-on-Trent, working in residence at the British Steel works, Shelton Bar. The experience of meeting people in an industrial environment and seeing art shown outside the confines of a gallery setting inspired me to embark on making public art. In 1987 I set up my studio in Brixton and began making public and private commissions. 

My experience of being taught by professional artists was both inspiring and instrumental in my own professional and personal development.  In 1991 I decided to combine my sculptural practice with part-time teaching so that I could share my expertise and knowledge with students. I taught as a visiting tutor on an art foundation course at Bedford College and then for many years as a part time lecturer at Keele University. It was then that I changed direction to focus on exhibiting work rather than producing commissions. This change in direction developed from working on a sculpture for the Hammersmith Hospital, London. Researching the hospital’s pioneering work in fertility led to a desire to take my ideas further, experimenting with new processes and materials, which subsequently led to several collaborations and exhibitions with other departments at Keele University.

In 2004 I moved to Carmarthenshire where I built a sculpture studio. I made the decision to move from academia into gallery learning, working initially at Oriel Myrrdin, Carmarthen and then at the National Gallery, London.

In 2010 I returned to lecturing at Swansea College of Art and worked there until 2019 as Senior Lecturer in Contextual Studies and on the Fine Art studio practice programme, where I taught sculpture to undergraduate and postgraduate students.

I took voluntary severance in 2019 to return to making sculpture full time, however I still retain strong links with Swansea College of Art as an Honorary Research Fellow. Since 2018 I have been an external examiner for Chester University; and I continue to teach freelance at galleries and universities.