After leaving Bedford, Andrew studied Fine Arts at Kingston University, London for three years.
He commented:
“The final year of my degree was probably the most rewarding. I moved my studio practice into the workshop alongside the various technicians whose skills I was able to glean. All artists in their own right, the technicians had their own studio practices. One of them was newly appointed Sculptor, Richard Trupp, who quickly reignited the university furnace and re-introduced bronze casting.
I quickly took this opportunity and began to introduce cast bronze into my own work. Richard became somewhat of a mentor to me at this point in my career and helped me to seek out further foundry experience once I completed my studies at university.
After graduating in 2006 I worked at Bronze Age Art Foundry, situated in Limehouse along the Docklands Light Rail. Part of the foundry itself is built beneath the railway arch where trains could be heard passing overhead. It was hot, noisy and dusty but I loved every minute of it. Working there showed me all the processes involved in the ancient method of ‘lost wax’ bronze casting within a commercial art foundry. Over time, I was able to gain a thorough understanding of the variety of different skills involved in the process.
Then I had the opportunity to take what I learnt with me when I travelled to Australia, taking a position at Meridian Sculpture, Melbourne.
Work in progress
Large amounts of my studio time are spent modelling directly in clay to create life-size or even larger than life figures. The clay is modelled over a carefully considered steel armature since the clay itself has little of its own integral strength. Before beginning I gather material such as photographs from which to work. During a studio visit I invite the person to pose for me on a platform that rotates 360 degrees, allowing me to photograph them from all angles. During this process I also take a series of measurements to refer to.
When sculpting a historical figure or a deceased person, the process becomes a matter of research, gathering all the best existing material on the person in question. Thankfully images online helps. The research may also call for historical accuracy; for example, identifying uniforms worn by a particular regiment if the subject had been part of the military.
Most of my commissioned sculptural work follows traditions of figurative sculpture and of casting into bronze using methods that in the main remained unchanged for centuries. The foundry process can only begin once everyone has agreed the clay is finished. As I often say to clients ‘what you see in the clay is what you get in bronze’.
The transformation of clay to bronze is a process that still remains a bit of a mystery to the public, despite its long history. For many it seems to conjure ideas of primeval alchemy and images of people toiling amongst fire and brimstone. These notions are quite accurate.
