Glass

 Obair na Mara-1

 This piece is one part of a collection I made inspired by the channels, holes and patterns imprinted into the pebbles and rocks that end up scattered across Scotland's beaches.
I want to highlight the details on specific rocks as well as contrast the work that nature does by the use of highly polished faceted sides. 
I'm really happy with the effect of these polished multiple facets, especially the top section which when placed against natural light, lets the viewer see very clearly, the detail from the rock's weather-battered surface. This finish also exposes the veiling and bubbles captured within the casting process. 

Obair na Mara-2

This is the second piece of the collection, inspired by and imitating details of the same weathered rock using different casting methods but following the same finishing techniques. 

Pieces 1 & 2 together

Obair na Mara-3

Piece three of the collection follows the same theme as the other two  but is hot sand cast rather than kiln formed, giving the piece a much more organic finish. 

​Macleod Standing Stone, Horgabost, Isle of Harris 

Core Cast
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​This piece is a glass representation of the Macleod Standing Stone, (Clach Macleoid), that sits above Horgabost Beach in South Harris. 

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​I used a combination of blue and clear glass to create the swirling colour giving an atmospheric feel, imitating the often stormy & dramatic skies of Harris. 

St. Clement's Church, Rodel, South Harris

​ Core Cast
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I chose this building to core cast as it's a beautiful example of very old architecture, has been re-built and restored many times, it carries so much history and is also a place I often visited growing up, so it holds many memories for me personally too. It is a fifteenth century church built originally for Clan Macleod and so the tombs inside as well as many of those out in the graveyard belong to Chiefs of the Clan dating back to the mid 1500s. Many of the graves also belong to those sadly lost in the Iolaire Disaster in 1918, including a relative of mine-another reason I chose to embody this place in glass. 
​It has been described as "Late Medieval sculpture at its best". 

Strangely, I find the close ups/views from beneath the piece looking into the core the most interesting, (although perhaps that's because it doesn't photograph particularly well the way it was made to be viewed).

The way the billets of glass have swirled and merged during the melting and reforming process has given the piece a very atmospheric and quite ghostly look and feel. I like that it has almost become quite abstracted, really making the viewer look properly to discover what is inside.