Artist’s Personal Statement – Malcolm Curley
An engineer and metal fabricator turned sculptor, I was originally working with steel, wood or willow, but I now use scrap and recycled materials to create shapes and forms which are fun, and which engage the viewer. Every piece is a one-off, all are weatherproofed. I exhibit locally in sculpture trails and community events, and my collection of safari animals can be spotted in the gardens of Bridgetown, Totnes, on permanent display.
‘Cry for help’
An Emperor penguin pleads for help as his chick and egg are carried away to certain doom as the ice breaks up. This sculpture, built of scrap and recycled materials, highlights the issue of global warming and rising sea temperatures, leading to catastrophe for penguins and the world’s wildlife.
Inspiration: The inspiration for the work stems from evidence that the emperor penguin colonies are suffering from catastrophic breeding failure because of rising sea temperatures – as ice melts, there is insufficient stable surface for the penguins to incubate their eggs or care for their chicks, and eggs have been seen floating away on pieces of ice that have broken off.
Sculpture 2: The Owl and the Pussycat
The sculpture portrays the owl and the pussycat attempting to row in a sea littered with plastic rubbish.
It uses a discarded kayak, and the figures are formed of scrap wood and insulation material, the surface is finished with my own mix of cement and acrylics to waterproof it.
Contact details: Malcolm Curley, Totnes, Devon
email: malcolmcurley@gmail.com