The Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition continues to pull in the crowds to the Treasure House in Beverley, accompanied by ‘Sculpting British Wildlife’ – sculptures by Yorkshire sculptor Emma Stothard.
Emma is an internationally acclaimed sculptor and is renowned for her wire and willow sculptures of wild and domestic animals and birds.
She has created a collection of works to celebrate the richness and beauty of British wildlife.
Emma said;
“I was delighted to be commissioned by the people at the Treasure House to produce my sculptured animals, which have taken over the whole building, including the library. They are in the corridors, on the stairs, and playfully interacting with the collection in the Art Gallery.”
The works are all for sale, and prices are available from the staff in the Art Gallery.
Emma’s sculptures are inspired by the creatures of the North York Moors around Whitby, where she lives, and by memories of her childhood in East Yorkshire. She enjoyed drawing the Holderness landscapes around her home as a child, and when she was a teenager, she worked on local farms during school holidays.
After graduating from Southampton Solent University, she moved to the Somerset Levels to learn to grow, coppicing, bundling and weaving willow. She returned to Yorkshire to study at Bretton Hall, Wakefield, now the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and began making small animals from woven willow.
After teaching in West Yorkshire, she moved to Whitby and took a teaching post at Whitby Community College. Her sculptures grace the gardens of stately homes, galleries and private homes around the country, and she currently has works on display at Newby Hall, near Ripon.
‘Sculpting British Wildlife’ can be seen at the Treasure House in Champney Road, Beverley, daily until 14 September, and accompanies the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition. On loan from the Natural History Museum in London, the exhibition features 100 awe-inspiring images, from fascinating animal behaviour to breathtaking wild landscapes. Admission to the exhibition is free.
