Feature | STYLE
Clare Ra lph Leonty
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clare@ralphleonty.co.uk | www.ralphleonty.co.uk
sland artist and sculptor Clare Ralph Leonty’s work has increasingly used the medium of glass, and her most recent pieces have been made with Tim Harris of Isle of Wight Studio Glass. Toxic Lady, renamed Lady of Light, is a full-sized torso of a woman, in glass, which has uranium glass embedded within the sculpture. This green glass glows under ultra-violet light because of its uranium content, and the sculpture has a music- and voice-activated lighting frame. You can see it in action at the Isle of Wight Glass Museum. A previous piece incorporated stained glass in slate; an art nouveau-inspired garden sculpture, with flowers in iridescent greens, blues, and purples. This piece was commissioned and is in a private collection. Before this, Clare made a huge ammonite sculpture in wrought iron, with rondels of stained glass radiating out from the centre, in a kaleidoscope of rainbow colours. This is also in a private collection. Clare was also commissioned to make a selection of garden sculptures for Robin Hill – a large stag made entirely
of stag oak; giant bluebell art and spider web, all made from steel; a fourfoot-high metal phoenix and a number of other giant flowers, all made from metal. You can see some of these in the woodland gardens at this popular Island attraction. She is now in the process of finishing a concrete sofa and chair - a lockdown project. Clare first hit the headlines when she designed a huge Easter Island head that was installed at Ventnor’s Botanic Gardens in 2002. A statement on our misuse of the planet’s resources, the sculpture was made from car parts and had two Jaguar wings for its nose. At this time Clare was also designing and making jewellery, which was made from dinosaur bone found on the south coast of the Island, and Isle of Wight Studio Glass (IWSG). In fact, Clare did work experience at IWSG under the tutelage of Michael Harris, which is where her passion for glass began. After lockdown, Clare again worked with Tim Harris to produce a limitededition range of iridescent ‘Lady of Light’ and ‘Men of Light’ paperweights, which have been selling well and are available directly from Clare. May and June 2022
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