My inspiration is the horse. More specifically, the thoroughbred. In particular, the difference in attitude, character and physicality that sets the champion racehorse apart. The thoroughbred horse is a truly breath-taking sight. Powerful yet graceful, athletic, balanced, fit, fast, stunningly beautiful and yet oblivious to the impact that this mesmerizing combination can have on the observer, the thoroughbred could maintain my interest in the horse as a subject for a lifetime.

However, it is in searching for the components that make a champion a champion that I find myself drawn into each subject with a fresh excitement. Every champion horse has something unique or, more likely, a unique combination of attributes that will set it apart from the herd. It is the process of trying to establish what these are, and attempting to capture them, that I find so alluring.

My ambition with every work is to sculpt the character, the presence, the movement and the likeness of the horse so that fleeting spark of excitement, passion and beauty can endure. How has the breed evolved in the last 300 years? How interesting would it be to be able to stand Eclipse next to Shergar? Sculpting a portrait of a great horse can be an accurate historical record of the bloodline as well as a work of art.

To capture the life, the energy and the willingness of spirit in clay and bronze is a huge, never-ending challenge to which I am becoming increasingly addicted. I hope that my involvement with these amazing animals and in this thrilling sport continues for many years to come.

I have always felt that thoroughbred racing and the pursuit of breeding inspirational horses is a world full of emotional energy at every turn. My job, as a sculptor and artist, is to create works that are so infused with this energy that they not only do justice to the horses themselves but inspire memories, in us, of their greatest achievements in the sport and the legacy that they, along side you, are creating.

I have been lucky enough to have sculpted and spent time with some wonderful horses including Sadler’s Wells, Montjeu, Galileo, Goldikova, Giant’s Causeway, Fastnet Rock, Yeats, Treve, American Pharaoh, Justify and Winx. I have loved spending time on the stud farms and learning from the top horsemen in the world about horses. I have been totally focused on the thoroughbred as a subject and honing my eye and techniques. In 2017 I completed a 20% over life-size mare and foal which was given to Her Majesty The Queen by His Highness Sheikh Mohammned and Her Highness Princess Haya and The Newmarket Commemoration Committee, to celebrate The Queen’s 90th Birthday and love of the thoroughbred. It was a commission that involved many challenges, including project managing various aspects of the new landscape, stoneworks, lighting, planting, as well as the sculptures themselves. It was an important commission that needed to be delivered on time, and withstand the scrutiny of the experts. Since my first large scale commission (the life-size bronze of Yeats in the parade ring at Ascot), to the works I am currently sculpting today, the importance, to me, that I do my upmost and give every ounce of effort to creating work that stands the test of time has not dwindled but only increased.

I feel extremely fortunate to be able to work in this field and the more time I spend within it, the more respect I gain for the amount of effort, time and emotional energy that goes into the pursuit of breeding the thoroughbred horse.