Art & Culture
ARTIST AT WORK
No. 45 Chris Dunseath, Palstave Axe Variation #8, 2021, 4 x 19 x 8cm, Bronze
T
he original development for this body of work started when I was invited to take part in the exhibition ‘New Dimensions – Contemporary Art Inspired by Hidden Objects’ in the Museum of Somerset, Taunton. I had full access to the Somerset Heritage Centre stores and was fascinated to come across drawers full of Bronze Age artefacts which had been excavated in Somerset. There were numerous forms of axes, which were the advanced technology of their time requiring considerable knowledge and skill to make. The logistics of acquiring the main ingredients of copper and tin showed that mining and trade were well established in 2,500 BCE. My response has been to develop a series of small
6 | Sherborne Times | August 2022
sculptures that extend the sculptural form of the axes and other objects by implying movement, animation and the passage of time in bronze and plaster. I have cast these bronzes locally and have been using techniques that would be familiar to people of the Bronze Age. My intention has been to use objects that have been below the ground for thousands of years as starting points to create a new series of sculptures for this age. chrisdunseath.com chrisdunseath Chris will be taking part in this year’s Somerset Art Weeks Event, 24th September - 9th October
