Upcycling: Red Nose is one of those pieces of furniture that have done service for generations. I found it in the basement of an elderly couple’s house in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They did not want to bring it to their new downsized place. The straightforward proportions of this chest of drawers have influenced my design. Its name derives from the new round knobs that I chose because they make a perfect match for the painted red circles.
Red Nose
Wood, acrylic paint. 1997
99 x 51 x 84 cm
London: walking along the Thames from the Tate Modern Gallery to the Oxo Tower, one passes under Blackfriars Bridge. The intricate construction details of its arches have always fascinated me, and I chose them as a motif for a small drypoint print. Continue reading Printmaking: intaglio print
This vintage chest of drawers is one of the first pieces of furniture that I painted. It illustrates my idea of upcycling furniture, giving it a new life by painting it and by finding stylish matching hardware for it. I had found the piece at a garage sale in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, where I used to live in the 1990s. It appealed to me with its clean proportions. I named it Double Breasted because I arranged the knobs like buttons on a men’s suit.
Wood, acrylic paint, brass hardware. 1998
76x46x84 cm
Detail: top plate
This figure group is one of my earliest clay sculptures. The figures are built from clay slabs and mounted on a custom made steel base. It had been delivered highly polished. I’m not fond of this surface treatment so I left the metal base out in the open for a few weeks. Continue reading Sculpture: clay figures
