Artworks that are close to my heart, exploring issues that interest and concern me.

This is my contemporary body of work – a group of artworks that are close to my heart, exploring issues that interest and concern me. Most of the works have artist statements explaining my ideas, and some formed part of specific exhibitions.

Since my student days, I have, on the whole, explored the same theme. It has flowed in slightly different directions from time to time, but I always seem to return to the same path.

I have always been interested in texture and detail. Texture is a way of expressing my emotional connection to what I sculpt or draw – the energy inherent in the subject and my connection to it. Detail is an essential part of the subject being explored, and I find myself drawn into the unique aspects of whatever I choose to portray.

My subject choices usually return to the human form and the natural environment. The artworks are both a personal enquiry and a broader exploration of how humans interact with nature.

• How do I connect with the natural world?
• Do I belong?
• What is this connection?
• Is it sacred?
• How has humanity grown so far from this essential connection to nature?
• Can we, as humans, reconnect?
• The small creatures are often overlooked, destroyed, or undervalued. Can we not see that the “microbiome” of nature is essential to human survival?
• How can I help bring awareness to these concerns?

Most of my recent works are cast in bronze – an incredibly diverse, strong, and subtle medium. I take moulds from natural elements such as rocks, trees, earth, and plants, and incorporate them into my sculptures alongside the human form and the smaller creatures – birds, moths, and other overlooked life.

Tankwa Artscape residency 2023. Karoo, South Africa.