ELEANOR LAKELIN
Photo: Jeremy Johns
VESSELS AND FORMS IN BURR Using the natural texture as a starting point, a form is sculpted to best reveal the contours and organic chaos found beneath the bark of these ancient trees. Horse Chestnut Burr is difficult to find but deliberately chosen for its pale colour and wild figure. By bleaching or ebonising, its sculptural qualities are highlighted and the fissures, cracks and decay which make it difficult to work are celebrated. -Eleanor Lakelin
Askorn, 2018. Horse Chesnut Burr, 2018. Lathe turned sandblasted and bleached 50 x 50 x 32 cm ÂŁ5,200 ex. VAT
Photo: Jeremy Johns
Rutland Void I, 2018. Horse Chestnut Burr, lathe turned, hollowed through burr, sandblasted and bleached. 35 x 35 x 30 cm ÂŁ 4,300 ex. VAT
Photo: Jeremy Johns
Photo: Alun Callender
Askorn Void I, 2018. Horse Chestnut Burr. Lathe turned, sandblasted and bleached. 50 x 50 x 32cm ÂŁ5,200 ex. VAT
Photo: Jeremy Johns
Voided Vessel XX , 2017 Lathe-turned. Hollowed through burr. Sandblasted. Ebonised and scorched 45 x 45 x 30 cm ÂŁ5,000 ex. VAT On show at the Centre for Art in Wood in Philadephia in autumn, availble again from November 2018
Voided Vessel XVII,2017. Horse Chestnut Burr, 28 x 28 x 25 cm Photo: Jeremy Johns
£3,600 ex. VAT
Rutland II, 2018 Lathe Turned. Hollowed through Burr. Sandblasted and Bleached 37 x 37 x 25 cm £4,400 ex. VAT
Photo: Jeremy Johns
COLLECT Saatchti Gallery 2018. Photo: Sophie Mutevelian
PAD London 2017 hoto: James Harris
Abbey Road I, 2018 Horse Chestnut Burr 30 x 30 x 35 cm £4,400 ex. VAT
(far right) Citadel 2, 2018 Horse chestnut burr 14 x 14 x 19 cm ÂŁ2,800 ex. VAT (far left) Citadel 1, 2018 Horse chestnut burr 19 x 19 x 23 cm ÂŁ3,200 ex. VAT
Photo: Jeremy Johns
Karst Form IV , 2017 Horse Chestnut Burr 24 x 50 x 50 cm £5,000 ex. VAT
Photo: Ester Segarra
Enclosed Vessel II C17, 2017 Horse Chestnut Burr - (lathe-turned, hollowed through and sandblasted) 23 x 23 x 19 cm
ÂŁ3,200 ex. VAT
Photo: Jeremy Johns
Rutland I, 2017. Horse Chestnut Burr, 32 cm x 32 cm x 27 cm. £4,400 ex. VAT
Voided Vessel XI C17, 2017. Horse Chestnut Burr, 45 x 45 x 25 cm. ÂŁ4,850 ex. VAT On show at the Centre for Art in Wood in Philadephia in autumn, availble again from November 2018
Voided Vessel XV B17 , 2017 Horse Chestnut 16 x 30 x 30 cm ÂŁ3,800 ex. VAT On show at the Centre for Art in Wood in Philadephia in autumn, availble again from November 2018
Eleanor Lakelin lives and works in London, where she creates sculptural objects in wood, using a traditional lathe and centuries-old chisels alongside modern sculpting techniques. Eleanor is fascinated by wood as a living, breathing substance with its own history of growth and struggle centuries beyond our own. She sculpts her distinctive forms using a traditional woodworking lathe and centuries-old chisels and gouges alongside modern techniques and tools. She is particularly inspired by the organic mayhem and creative possibilities of burred wood. This proliferation of cells, formed over decades or even centuries as a reaction to stress or as a healing mechanism is a rare, mysterious and beautiful act of nature. The twisted configuration of the grain and the frequent bark inclusions and voids are challenging to work and the forms difficult to hollow but the removal of the bark reveals a secret, ethereal landscape, unseen by anyone before. Parts of the form are sculpted smooth and others left raw and untouched. Heavy, forceful hollowing gives way to sandblasting and fine and dextrous work cleaning up every fissure and contour. Pieces are bleached and scorched and tirelessly hand-worked to different lustres and an alabaster-like smoothness. They become objects that invite touch and objects that touch us, reminding us of our elemental and emotional bond with wood and our relationship to the Earth.
‘I peel back bark to reveal the organic chaos that can exist in the material itself and build up layers of texture through carving and sandblasting. I use the vessel form and surface pattern to explore time, the layers and fissures between creation and decay and the erosion of nature.’ –Eleanor Lakelin
Brought up in a rural village in Wales, Eleanor Lakelin now lives and works in London. Having originally worked in education in Europe and West Africa, Eleanor retrained as a cabinet-maker in 1995. For the last twenty years she has dedicated herself to working in wood and honed her skills through a series of masterclasses. Since 2011 she has concentrated her practice on making sculptural forms and vessels and has exhibited widely in the UK. Recent exhibitions include Art Monte-carlo, Nature Lab at Design Basel and a collection of work showcased at the British House in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil during the Olympic Games 2016. She was most recently nominated for the British Wood Awards 2017.
SARAH MYERSCOUGH GALLERY
Viewings by appointment only Studio 401, Southbank House Black Prince Rd, London SE1 7SJ UK Tel: +44 (0) 20 7495 0069 info@sarahmyerscough.com