Renewal

I am fascinated by the natural process of renewal. Life follows death follows life, as sure as day follows night follows day. My creative practice focuses on emergence, regeneration and progression, drawing on influences from the natural world.

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There is no such thing as ‘status quo’. We live in a dynamic system and new forms are always evolving. Even in the middle of destruction we can find seeds of renewal, signals of potential growth, hope for a new future.  

Morth

In nature, whenever one thing ceases to be, something else emerges, adapts, evolves and expands to fill the space. This is the essence of ‘Morth’, a collapsing of my name, Martin Staniforth, alluding to shape-shifting.

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Fall and Rise

My sculpture experiments with forms falling and rising again. Be that commissions of 500-year-old fire-damaged timbers that rise up, abstracted microscopic recyclers, shards of porcelain regenerating, installations of Asteria - goddess of falling stars, or bronze torsos of the cracked human form: Achilles - vulnerable hero and Persephone - goddess of the changing seasons.

Vulnerability

As part of this journey of curiosity, I am intrigued by the notion of vulnerability and how this is often masked by statements of apparent confidence and certainty. Mankind may try to make its mark last forever, but there are stronger forces elsewhere in the natural world. Can we take strength through showing our inner qualms? To consider this for yourself, you could watch Brene Brown's TED talk on vulnerability.

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