Mostly now come and gone, but it was a good year and very pleasant to look back upon.
Sandwich Arts Week, September 12th – 19th, St Mary’s Church
Lots of brilliant events are taking place during the week, in addition to the main exhibition in St Mary’s.
LEEDS CASTLE SCULPTURE TRAIL was from August 29th to October 4th, and I was very happy to be there again with colleague David Gisby and a wide-ranging selection of other sculptors. On their website, scroll down and click ‘meet the sculptors’ for fuller details.
Pashley Manor: sculpture in a classic historic garden
Pashley Manor is now closed for the season, which began with their famous tulip festival at Easter-time. The weather hurried them along this year – the tulips were magnificent at the moment, but did not last to the end; but there are always plenty of other things to see, whether horticultural or sculptural. I was very pleased with the locations of the pieces I had there this year, especially the startling Centipede on wood, and sales were very positive, which is always nice!
Last year, in addition to my woodpecker and arum lilies seen above, they had my fox and pheasant around the grounds – did you spot them? This year as usual, I will have my regular tulips, daffodils and birdbaths on display, but also two striking new works: a squirrel with acorn, and a giant centipede mounted on a huge shard of wood.
They also have excellent light lunches and teas! On the Kent-Sussex border, there could not be a pleasanter way to enjoy the English traditional country house garden. The sculpture is for sale – ask in the shop – and there is also a very good selection in the gift shop. Open from April through to the end of October.
DELAMORE ARTS 2026
Delamore is ALWAYS brilliant – do visit if you can.
A selection of my pieces there this year is shown below – I’m delighted with the settings of all of them. Well done Delamore!
The wonderful Tithe Barn in Lenham village is again hosting the very successful Pilgrims Way Artists’ Summer Exhibition, on the dates shown. I have enjoyed being a guest sculptor for several years, now. Varied paintings of very high quality, and interesting and imaginative sculptures.
The woodpecker on a wooden wall-hanger seen below is one of my pieces which will be shown; plus badgers, iris, an enormous crab (though it’s not the biggest crab I’ve made!) and the Chelsea Flower Show award-winning giraffe, amongst others.
THE ARTFUL GALLERY, SURREY
Located at: The Artful Gallery, Whitehanger, Marley Lane, Haslemere in Surrey, GU27 3PY. This is an extensive garden which each year hosts a number of carefully-selected guest sculptors and artists. This will be my first appearance in this event, which runs from 6th to 21st June. Exciting!
The Fire and Iron Gallery, Leatherhead is open all year
I’m delighted to continue to be one of the featured artists at Lucy Quinnell’s gallery. There is some fabulous work here: ranging from traditional blacksmith’s functional items to ‘pure art’ sculpture. If you don’t already know of it, do visit the gallery. Allow plenty of time to marvel at (in order, below) Tim Cotterill’s brilliant bronze frogs, Joanne Tinker’s incredible miniatures, Mick Maxen’s exquisite welded textures, and a good selection of my own insects, animals and flowers, amongst a myriad of others. Just off junction 9 of the M25, KT22 0EN.
Lucy has also created an online shop which is well worth a visit. There is a link to it HERE.
Lovely’s Gallery, Northdown Road Margate
Margate is undergoing an art-led revival, with the Turner Contemporary in the Harbour, and new art shops and galleries in the Old Town. In Cliftonville, once the genteel end of town with the grander hotels and seaside boarding-houses but now very Bohemian in character, is Lovely’s Art Gallery and Artist’s Materials. Founded in 1891 (so just 40 years too late to supply JMW with his canvas, oils or water-colours) and now in the fourth generation, this family business is an Aladdin’s Cave of art. Some is very modern; some of it amusing, but all imaginative and original. I have twice held solo exhibitions in their upstairs Art Space, and I am frequently surprised by their requests for front-window display work.
