The Keep, Lympstone

From an early age Anthony had a fascination with boats, inheriting his father’s fondness for them, particularly the old clinkers.  As a small boy, growing up by the waterline Anthony’s passion grew, spending most of his life around the sea, he played in, around and under them.

 

His return to the River Exe provided not just a deeper connection to the estuarine waters, it became the motivation to search for the forgotten pieces of his father’s wooden clinker boat, E66.

 

Anthony was compelled to investigate this evocative calling, rather like the sound of the sirens calling fishermen in the vast ocean.

 

Over the last 3 years his search has taken him to the shores of South West England and more recently to the Scilly Isles.

 

These recollections have fostered a series of determined, emotive responses, collecting and collating a body of work that is evolving with eternal possibility.

 

His work reflects a journey that navigates the plausibility that E66 is still out there, transforming herself into different tributaries.  

 

Pushing himself to the limit, almost possessed, his curiosity has carried him into dangerous voids.  Often treacherous, sometimes isolating, camping out on rocky outcrops waiting for the tides or storms to subside.  Searching precariously for offerings.

 

Occasionally, the harvested objects present a map of the journey undertaken. Responding to what is relinquished, he works with considered judgement, able to stand back and support them. “Bits of wood will do that, create locality like a map.” He says.

 

Anthony searches for wood empathetic to an era. “Things were done differently then,” he says,  “these old traditional wooden boats had more character.”

 

Naturally, over time these boats have broken up or perished, like E66. Aware that he is dealing with a small window of inevitable decay, he is eager to preserve the wooden bones of these assiduous historical boats.

 

However, it was a simple lead patch that became the inspired narrative catalyst for this unique body of work.  Once the preserve of a vessel it now morphs back naturally into a vessel of its own. Enriching and embellishing the narrative. The lead boat’s navigational intention is revealed to him further, providing a safe harbour or a lure. It sits within the found materials like a diorama.

 

Working with found objects is a preoccupation of many artists, yet Anthony’s loyal process is almost photographic, working mostly with a monochrome palette, the tessellation of black and white capturing a moment in time before it disappears.

 

Black pitch, with it’s undeniable evocative aroma becomes the fabric of each piece. Its rich, dark, syrupy intensity is immediately transportive. It’s the sense of journey that manifests. 

 

His resolute response to the offerings of these found pieces has led to a carefully curated and rewarding assemblage that underlies the playful recapturing of the past, melding* deeply within a framework of the present.

Assemblage from Found Objects from the Estuary

42x27cm

Framed In An Open Frame