The Curve Blogs

Shadow Drawings

Celia Smith is an artist who draws with wire as others draw with pencil.  For her creating sculptures out of wire is like drawing in three dimensions.  She became inspired to make wire shadows during the spring of 2006.  The sunlight seemed particularly sharp after the grey of winter and as a result she kept noticing peoples shadows and was intrigued by how the shadows distort yet still retain the characteristics of the person casting the shape.

Dunlin

Birds are Celia’s main inspiration; capturing their movement and character is her primary concern.  She finds that wire has a spontaneity that can give her sculptures a feeling of life and energy.

Lapwing

The majority of Celia’s sculptures are of domestic and native British birds.  She aims to capture not only their shape but also their movements and character.  A lot of time is spent drawing and studying the birds and often small wire studies and life-size pieces are made directly in front of the subject.

Guinea Fowl

Growing up as a farmer’s daughter has given Celia a passion for the natural environment.  To get ‘close to her subject’ Celia spends time away from her studio in beautiful and inspiring rural locations – these range from studying migratory Whooper swans in Norfolk to creating Greylag Geese in the Shetland islands.

The exhibition will run until 26 May 2011 and visitors are welcome to the Curve Gallery during school hours.  There will be an opportunity to meet the artist at a Private View from 4-5.30pm on Thursday 26 May.