When one walks through the hushed corridors of the Ashmolean Museum, the eye is naturally drawn to the masterpieces on canvas. Yet, for a carver, the true revelation often lies at the periphery. There is a particular frame within those walls—carved by the incomparable Grinling Gibbons—that serves as a silent testament to a level of…
As a child in the aftermath of the Second World War, my world was defined by the jagged geometry of the City’s bomb sites. To most, these were merely ruins; to me, they were my first playgrounds. I climbed through the exposed foundations and scorched timbers of a London that had stood since the Great…
The Workman’s Brew: Covent Garden and the Inigo Jones Standard. The Formative Years Before my work became international, and before I reached the level of Master, I was cutting my teeth on the historic streets of London. The early 80s were my classroom, and the Grade I listed landmarks of the city were my teachers.…