Simon Gudgeon and Sculpture by the Lakes, in association with Summer Lodge Country House Hotel and Southern Comfort Travel submitted an auction lot, which we are delighted to announce raised £13,500.

The winning bidder successfully won a visit to Sculpture by the Lakes, including lunch with Simon & Monique Gudgeon and a sculpture of their choice from Simon’s new Collection Range.  The prize also included a stay at Summer Lodge Country House Hotel and a chauffeur driven car to and from the Sculpture Park.

Treloar’s provides education, care, therapy, medical support and independence training to young people with physical disabilities from the UK and overseas.

For more information about them visit their website www.treloar.org.uk

At 1.8m tall Lyrebird, with its smooth lines and conceptual, figurative silhouette, blends effortlessly into this quintessential English country garden, still maintaining the vitality and emotion that is always present in Simon’s work.

Now summer seems to be upon us it is certainly well worth visiting Summer Lodge for an alfresco lunch or afternoon tea in the garden and admiring the latest “must see” attraction in the hotel grounds.

For further information visit www.simongudgeon.com and to visit Summer Lodge go to www.summerlodgehotel.co.uk

Featured on the Jerram Gallery stand are two bronze sculptures by Simon Gudgeon; Isis and Reflection. These are small versions of Simon’s larger iconic pieces and are part of a new Collection Range launched recently.

Designed and manufactured entirely in the UK these ‘miniature’ bronzes offer the collector a chance to own a Simon Gudgeon sculpture at a more affordable price.

Isis is a smaller version of the larger monumental sculpture standing alongside the Serpentine in Hyde Park.  The inspiration for Reflection comes from the form of an Ibis and the full size version can be seen at Sculpture by the Lakes.

The Jerram Gallery

Stand B41

Olympia Exhibition Centre

London

W14 8UX

As well as a chance to see the grounds, which haven’t been open to the public in over 20 years, there was also an impressive selection of Nick’s classic cars and an exhibition of some of Simon Gudgeon’s sculptures.

As well as his new Collection Range and three large pieces, Simon also installed a pair of Silver Swans into the lake.

These elegant, serene birds caught the eye of many of the visitors, including HRH Duchess of Cornwall, who was attending the event as Patron of the Bobby Van Trust and had formerly lived at Middlewick House, before selling it to the Masons in 1995.

The two-day event was a great success with over 900 visitors and raised a substantial amount for the two charities.

To read the article CLICK HERE

Country Gentlemen’s Association April/May 2013

To read article CLICK HERE

Art of England April 2013

Described as one of the most beautiful and unique sculptures parks in the United Kingdom, Sculpture by the Lakes has been captured in all its splendour and has been brought together in the pages of this ‘must have’ book.

Through stunning photographs and the artist’s own words, the book reveals the background to Simon’s sculptures and the development and opening of his Sculpture Park in West Dorset.

It’s a great read and a covetable coffee table book.  We hope you enjoy it.

Click to order

We are relatively lucky in that the meadows across the river from us are much lower than our land but such is the sheer quantity and unrelenting nature of the rain that the river has flooded in through the low-lying woodland on our western fringes.  This has poured straight into the Lakes, which subsequently overflow and flood back across our ground to rejoin where the river roughly flows.  It’s done this at least twice during December but thank goodness not anywhere near any of our buildings so our feet have stayed dry.

Not so lucky have been some recently planted shrubs, trees and herbaceous perennials.  Many have literally rotted in the ground with roots sodden and black – it has been a little dispiriting.  Still as I write we have had a few days of no rain and the river is receding slowly but surely and the muddy, slippery paths are starting to green up again.

But it’s not been all doom and gloom, we’ve certainly not had much in the way of really cold weather, although some say we need a good cold snap to kill off a few bugs and slugs.  Already the willows have started to push out their divinely silky silver buds and the witch hazel is flowering (this one is Hamamelis mollis ‘Pallida’), however I am now pushing to get the beds tidy and cut back, to move things which need dividing or replacing before things start growing again.  The forecast says a possible cold snap towards the end of January but we’ll see.

Yesterday as I was cutting back roses and clematis I came upon this late bloomer.

This is the shrub version of the wonderful Iceberg rose, an excellent performer and non-stop flowerer which it aptly proves here!

Another great favourite of mine at this time of the year is the rather dull looking Sarcococca confusa, but get anywhere within 20 feet of this terrific little shrub and you’ll be assaulted by the most delicious fragrance wafting through the garden.  Also known as Christmas or Sweet Box, the tiny little flowers are hardly visible amongst the evergreen foliage but boy do they pack an olfactory punch!

For another sensory delight, the greenhouse is the place to be at the moment, perfect for taking shelter from sudden showers, as the Jasmine is in full flower.

On a warm day I leave the door open to get some air through and this delicious twining climber scents the whole vegetable garden.I bought it as a houseplant many years ago and have potted it on several times but now it’s reached it’s final home as I can only just heave it in and out of the door each spring and autumn.

One of my Christmas presents – till recently this scrambling rose (subjected to hard pruning so not much to see) was clinging rather inelegantly to some wonky bamboo canes but it now has this vastly superior frame to drape itself over.

Check out their website at www.artisanplantsupports.co.uk

Now back to the pruning……

Regular visitors to Sculpture by the Lakes, Brian Crompton and his wife, recently took a walk around the sculpture park on a changeable November day, which resulted in some great photos that we thought we’d share with you.

Having moved to Dorset just over four years ago, Brian’s interest in photography developed, inspired by living in an area surrounded by beautiful locations.

Specialising in land and seascapes, he finds himself constantly looking out for new and unique locations, checking weather reports, planning around tides, sunrises and sunsets.

He says “Sculpture by the Lakes certainly offers a unique opportunity to capture the changing elements in a beautiful location with stunning sculpted creations.”

It’s a tricky time too, tempting as it is to make a clean sweep of the beds, there are still late perennials doing their thing and because of the late season some of the Asters have hardly started so there is still quite a lot to look forward to.

This is also the time of year that I plan for autumn and winter jobs and I can start sending out wish lists to plant nurseries near and far.  The much-awaited Butterfly Walk is now planned and all the shrubs, trees, and perennials ordered.  The backbone of the planting will be every butterfly’s number one favourite, Buddleja, aptly named the Butterfly Bush.   A recent feature about this plant in the Royal Horticultural Society’s magazine The Garden was perfectly timed and I now have ten little shrubs waiting for the ground to be cleared and cultivated.  Hopefully I can get them in by the end of the month and then they’ll have a chance to get good roots down before the winter chill ceases all activity.

I have also included Lavender, Nepeta (Catmint), Hydrangea, Honeysuckle, Escallonia and a smattering of Lilacs and I shall scatter some Borage seeds once everything else is in.  The Butterfly Conservation website – http://www.butterfly-conservation.org  - has been invaluable and provides a list of 100 Best Butterfly Nectar Plants.

Some parts of the garden ending others coming to life, there’s much to keep us gardeners occupied over the coming weeks.

The visitors, led by Don Courtney arrived on a glorious late summer’s day for a picnic by the lakes.  The group of friends regularly organise trips out and say they enjoy a day of motoring and a visit to a local attraction.

Of the 241 cars made, it is estimated that 221 survive across 14 countries.  Many of the cars , commonly called “Hurgs” are still in use, with a few in active competition.

The cars glistened in the sunshine as they took pride of place in the car park at Sculpture by the Lakes, creating an added attraction for other visitors.

Weather has been more than challenging this season, an incredibly dry spring when everything was burst

ing forth and then two and half months of cold, rain, wind – more autumnal than anything else.  But now a vqgue sense of normality reigns – three warm days, a thunderstorm and then cool again – something we are more used and which is merely disappointing rather than the depressing cold of June and July.

As I write this, the sun is shining and the gardens are full of visitors.  The cool weather has extended the  season of many plants and the flowers have hung on for longer.  The worst casualties during the cold spell were the roses which never seemed to have a full flush as they were always bashed and battered and then turned to mush – I’m hoping for a good second flush so we’re feeding them like mad.  The daylilies also had a bad start to the season, many of the buds seemed distorted and I think there was some bug at work as well as the lack of rain – I picked off all the affected buds and burnt them just in case.  As soon as the sun shone forth – just in time for the start of the Olympics I noticed – they rallied and have been flowering fit to burst ever since.  Daylilies are my NBFs of the moment (New Best Friends), to such an extent that I’ve put aside a whole corner of the front garden just for them.  It’s only their first season so they have a lot of filling out to do but by next year they should start to dazzle.

My favourite parts of the garden at the moment centre around the walkway, which we call the Wise Walk, its colours and shapes are still good even though I’ve had to start cutting all the Alchemilla mollis back.  I have a love/hate relationship with this plant – in spring and full of fresh growth and flowers it cannot be beaten but as soon as it starts to droop and squash its neighbours and scatter seeds everywhere I admit to having less enthusiasm for it.

My other star at the moment is the Karikome Garden.  This year finally, after three odd years of clipping and shaping by Wizard Topiarist and Japanese Garden Guru Jake Hobson (www.niwaki.com), my mad idea of a lumpy-bumpy, blobbish sort of landscape formed our of the evergreen hedging shrub Lonicera nitida has finally come to fruition and I have to admit to being thrilled with it.  It still needs to grow up at the back, but the front part by the house is exactly as I imagined it to be – what more can a gardener wish for.

In July the National Museum of Wildlife Art saw the unveiling of Simon Gudgeon’s iconic sculpture Isis at their Sculpture Trail in Jackson Hole.

The piece is the only monumental sculpture by a British sculptor to be installed in the Trail.  The vast landscape and dramatic backdrop of the Sleeping Indian Mountain contrasts beautifully with the smooth style and lines of Isis, the goddess of nature, and the sheer expanse and ruggedness of the landscape that she nestles in brings a new dimension to the piece.

The new outdoor Sculpture Trail was realised after a generous donation by Debbie Peterson in memory of her husband Jim, who loved the arts.  It will bring a whole new dimension to the museum by placing large sculptures outdoors where the changing seasons and different times of day will make them an ever-changing event.

Standing 10 feet tall and weighing ¾ of a ton, she is identical to the one unveiled in Hyde Park in 2009.   That piece sits on the south shore of the Serpentine, near the Princess Diana memorial fountain and the unveiling was part of a fundraising effort to build a children’s education centre in the Park. The building is now, after just six months identified as an excellent model for sustainability.   The inspiring building has been shortlisted for a Greenbuild award.

Sculpture by the Lakes provides ‘Isis’ with another waterside position overlooking the beautiful Dorset countryside at the Lakes.  This magnificent bronze sculpture represents the Egyptian goddess of motherhood, who could take the form of a bird.

Installing her was a major operation for the team at the Lakes.  It required a special plinth and then precision moving and positioning.  Her arrival on a ten tonne crane lorry may not have looked very romantic and lying on her side, she seemed, almost to be sleeping.  Covered in blankets she could easily have been resting in advance of installation in her new home.

But what a sight, when she was safely in position!  Simon’s early morning image was pure magic!

Let me quickly setting the scene for you: there was little in the way of garden when we arrived.  Five fruit trees and no flowerbeds except a two foot wide border on the northeast face of the house and another on the southwest side.  The shady northeast side had sun-loving plants and the baked southwest side had shade-lovers….  an antipodean experiment which hadn’t quite worked?  The rest of the land was down as mown grass and a lot of fencing.  It’s daunting to start with such an empty page but at the time it was still a very exciting prospect.

A blank canvas…

December – a good time of year to shift the entire contents of one garden to another?  Partly, but I had not anticipated the shock to some of the larger specimens nor the impact that wind was going to have, added to which was the very major drainage problems we had, and continue to have.  If you look up alluvial or riverine soils in the reference books, one of the first things they tend to say is “very prone to compaction”.  Such an understatement and so many losses.  I feel horribly guilty now when I consider the lingering death I inflicted on what where some beautiful specimens. Eight 10 foot Italian cypress trees (Cupressus pyramidalis), first blown horizontal by winter gales then a slow drowning in horribly compacted, cloggy soil; a beautiful 14 foot evergreen Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora) which suffered a gradual decline over three years until eventually I put it out of its misery; a similar fate for a willow-leaved Podocarp (Podocarpus salignus) and my favourite oak-leaved Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia); still worse, 40 feet of box hedging and eight clipped box cones – I’ve managed to save some but they still look a bit peaky.

The doomed Italian cypress and box hedging - the mud lurks malevolently

On the positive side, all my bamboos survived the experience and are now thriving and finally regaining their pre-transplant height.  Given a few more years and wet summers they should produce some impressive sized canes.  Bamboos, being a sort of giant grass, respond just as a lawn would to good food and plenty of water, they grow fast, and big.  A surprising transplant success was a little species evergreen oak tree – Quercus myrsinifolia or the Bamboo-leafed Oak – which sulked for eighteen months with literally not a leaf on it, then suddenly produced a mass of new growth.   All the herbaceous did well of course, these garden thugs are used to such brutal treatment on an almost annual basis, and all the roses bar one have thrived.

Humble beginnings for the now impressive Bamboo Garden

Mistakes?  Oh sure, lots of them initially, and subsequently and probably in the future too.  But that’s what I love about the entire horticultural process.  The ability to change and adapt, experiment with new plants or learn something about an old favourite.  There is nothing so satisfying as putting in a new specimen and see it thrive because actually, for once, you’ve given it exactly what it needs.

Simon Gudgeon is making a significant mark. He, in association with the Halcyon Gallery, has had considerable influence on the London landscape with the unveiling of another of his magnificent pieces of sculpture in the open air and in plain view.

‘Search for Enlightenment’ is in a unique position. It can be seen simultaneously in several places and enjoyed by more people.

In the wonderful landscape of Dorset at ‘Sculpture by the Lakes’ near Dorchester, the piece sits on the banks of the Frome and the human heads gaze into the east, waiting for the rising sun, which obliges every morning.

The Simon Gudgeon footprint also spreads to the banks of the Thames at Millbank, where Henry Moore’s ‘Locking Piece’ shares the stage with another edition of ‘Search for Enlightenment’. The iconic gazing pair sits serenely here while the hustle and bustle of the city relentlessly goes on.  Across the river is the MI5 building and one cannot help but wonder, who is watching whom?

Everyone comments on this extraordinary piece. It is a real ‘show stopper’.  Visitors to the Lakes find “Search for Enlightenment’ a piece to talk about.  Without interpretation or explanation, each individual finds his or her own meaning in it. And often people share similar thoughts on the piece. The ‘search’ resonates with most viewers.

In his own words Simon says:

“ I stood on a 240 million year old mountain in Africa and watched the 4.6 billion year old sun descend below the horizon. As the light diminished the 200 billion stars in the Milky Way began to glow in the night sky. Our galaxy extends for 100,000 light years and is part of a Universe that is 93 billion light years across. The Universe is over 10 billion years old and consists of hundreds of billions of galaxies. It is at that moment I began to grasp the narrowness of consciousness, the vastness of time and the transience of humanity.”

This featured on the Sculpture by the Lakes Christmas Card in 2011

Award winning photographer Paul Reiffer recently captured some of Simon’s key pieces at the Lakes and despite the somewhat inclement weather on the day he visited, found his images more impressive than he had imagined.

http://www.paulreiffer.com/2012/02/sculpture-by-the-lakes-art-by-simon-gudgeon-in-dorset/

Courtesy of Alfie Hunter

The latest addition of ‘Search for Enlightenment’ is now at home in Hyde Park next to the prestigious “One Hyde Park’ address. Whilst inside the atrium of this Candy and Candy development is Simon’s stunning ‘Dancing Cranes’. Across the road in the Park, on the banks of the Serpentine is his ‘Isis’, in all her glory and only a short distance away from the Isis Education Centre.

While galleries and museums offer an opportunity to view from a distance,  art placed outside and in public spaces allows us to share the experience of art up close and very personal. Art becomes a public debate and not just left to the so called art critics. Public art has the potential to challenge our perceptions and transform our thinking. It can get us talking and it can focus the attention on a place as well as the piece itself. It brings art to the community and breaks down the boundaries that can discourage our engagement with art.

The placement of art outdoors also provides a canvas, a backdrop that changes with the seasons, the light, the weather. It allows the artist to create on a grander scale and challenges the artistic process and the technical skills of those involved in the realisation of the piece.

‘Search for Enlightenment’ iconic? Why not!

Before we even exchanged contracts I had the camera out and started taking photos of what was there, measuring up and generally making plans.  I had my list of what plants were coming with me and I knew what I wanted:

• A vegetable garden – with raised beds including separate raspberry and asparagus patches
• Chicken run – close to veg patch
• Greenhouse and potting shed – with water AND electricity.  No more stinky, erratic, paraffin heaters for me!
• A dedicated bamboo garden
• An exotic garden area
• A walkway for the roses and climbers
• A grasses and prairie plantation

And that was it, to begin with…

We began with a big set square, a role of white nylon string and a barrow load of wooden pegs. The first area to be marked out and planted was the veg garden.

Small brown patch = asparagus; large brown patch = raspberries.

This proved to be relatively easy and lulled us into a marvellous feeling of “that wasn’t so bad…”.  The chickens and vegetable garden share the best bit of soil on the whole property being in the sloping northeast corner and comprising a delightfully friable sandy loam.

My chirpy optimism and a touch of smugness at the prospect of a whole garden full of yummy, easy-to-dig soil was soon to suffer.  Through chats with neighbours and recollections of past fisher folk and locals, I have since discovered the true nature of what we had inherited.  Back in the early 1970s the three main lakes where dug and stocked with fish for angling but first they raised some money by stripping the entire area of it’s top soil and selling it.  Tons of gravel from the area of the lakes was tipped onto the now denuded site and allowed to drain.  The gravel was then also sold and the three lakes, all spring fed, gradually filled up, originally they were stocked with trout but subsequently replaced with coarse fish.

This shows the area of the house, garden and meadows where in the 1970s earthmoving monster trucks thundered, thousands of tons of top soil was removed and the gravel dug from the lakes drained before being sold – and this is a good place to make a garden?

To give them their due, whoever dug the lakes did a pretty good job leaving some attractive features such as the five islands and undoubtedly planted a good number of trees.  The land however was left pretty much as it was when they sold the last of the gravel – probably levelled and sown with a rough grass mix but already horribly compacted by countless monster trucks and earth moving machines.  There was literally no topsoil, just a mix of grey clay subsoil, flint and stony gravel with the odd fossil thrown in – and this is where we decided to make a garden.

I often wonder if I shouldn’t have applied for a grant for re-greening what was in effect a brown field site.  Certainly from the odd bits of tarmac, concrete, wire, old pipes and general detritus we constantly find even when digging the smallest planting hole, this does feel like a post-industrial piece of ground.  We also discovered the remains of an old concrete bridge across the river which dated back to the 1940s, so add in a bit of World War II airfield building and there you have it.

The trouble with beginning to write about something you’ve been deep into for a while is where to open the dialogue, and once you’ve chosen the entry point then how much detail do you go into without getting terminally bogged down or, worse still, boring the pants off the reader. So bear with me, I’m new to this but I aim to get better at it with time.

When I learnt my wordsmith craft up in London many years ago, one of the handy maxims passed on was, “Tell them what you’re going to tell them, tell them, then tell them you’ve told them”, or, make sure you’ve got a beginning, a middle and an end.  Well this is the beginning.

I shall try to explain what we started with in the garden and how we went about planning and construction.  Contrary to what most people think when they come to see the sculpture park and garden, nothing was planned – and I really mean it, nothing.  For a start we had no intention of building a sculpture park, it was merely something that became patently obvious after the first six months.  There was always going to be a garden because I had a lorry load of plants needing a home but the idea of eventually opening our gates and expecting people to pay to look at my horticultural endeavours was never even a speck on the horizon.

Part of the lorry load of plants, these at least have found a home…

There will be three or four blog entries that chart the early days, then an overview of the countdown to our opening on Saturday 4th June 2011.  This comes from a diary I kept at the time and is the result of late night scribblings recorded at the end of each day, listing our successes, our failures, the weather and our general state of mind. Eventually I will be able to continue with a current garden diary so readers of the blog see how we progress.  I might go off at a tangent from time to time in case there are subjects I want to cover in more detail.

I hope to be able to share a little of what every gardener goes through; the hopes and impatience for the new season to begin, the frustrations of seeing something fail but not knowing why, but also the spirit-lifting joy that the simplest of things can bring – a planting combination that turns out better than expected, the first daffodil, a first crop of apples off a newly planted tree.  These are the delights that take us back into the garden every day with a sense of purpose and a limitless optimism.

Happy combinations that gladden the heart

Simon Gudgeon’s ‘Sculpture by the Lakes’ recently played host to the combined talents of photographer Elie Dervonte and students from the Urdang Musical Theatre Academy in London. The event provided an opportunity to explore the concept of art forms combined and harmonised to create a different artistic dynamic. Simon Gudgeon is never afraid to expand and extend the potential of his art and to explore different ways of sharing it with a wider audience.

His unshakeable belief in the ever-changing nature of our lives, the significance of our interaction with the environment and his commitment to realising his creative energies, together release something that can touch us on many levels and stimulate harmony, balance and rhythm.

Art has the capacity to enhance our lives and to provide us with a vehicle through which we can communicate. It is a language and the artist (sculptor, dancer, painter) takes the energy and pulse of their creative skills shaping it into something that creates a narrative or tells a story.

Sculpture, as a visual art captures a situation so that our consciousness may have time to examine and appreciate it. Combining different art forms allows the artist to elevate and extend their interpretation as well as the observer’s experience of the art.

This fusion of forms brings depth and a broader perspective to each element. It represents a confluence of minds and ideas, where the richness of traditions is blended to create a new energy. Using lines, both the sculptor and dancer are able to create a narrative. The photograph ‘freezes’ the moment capturing the drama, the movement, the energy.

Art form synthesis has enormous potential both for the individual artists and the observer. It crosses cultural and social traditions and has done so as long as humans have existed, from cave paintings to the Cirque du Soleil; from the symbolism of The Dancing Shiva to the dancers of Matisse and Degas.

'Dancing Cranes' in the lobby of One Hyde Park, courtesy of Candy & Candy

Simon has had a number of his sculptures installed in some prestigious places. Now his art is ensconced in one of the most highly valued pieces of real estate in the world: One Hyde Park is billed as the World’s Best Address. This exclusive apartment complex sits in the middle of London’s Knightsbridge next to The Mandarin Oriental Hotel. It was developed and designed by Candy & Candy , a world leading interior design and development management company.

Amongst its installations at One Hyde Park the Halcyon Gallery has included the evocative ‘Dancing Cranes’ (one of seven Limited Edition sculptures) by Simon Gudgeon in the residents’ lobby. The stunning ‘Dancing Cranes’ are perfectly placed in the contemporary surroundings of this exclusive address.

The symbolism of the crane appears in many cultures and especially that of the Chinese. It represents love, joy and a celebration of life. Mating for decades and even life, the birds represent good and an absolute bond between two people. The crane is also known as the ‘Bird of Happiness’.

Courtesy of Candy & Candy

The cranes are also an important and potent symbol of Simon’s artistic philosophy; that which we create should work in harmony with nature and our environment. This theme is all the more relevant as the cranes are a species under threat, if not critically endangered. Most have elaborate and noisy courting displays or “dances”.

Sculpture by the Lakes, Dorset

And this is the pose adopted by Simon’s ‘Dancing Cranes,  imbued with movement, attitude and a vitality that is then reflected in Monique Gudgeon’s choice of ‘Stipa tenuissima‘ or ‘Pony Tails’, planted around them at ‘Sculpture by the Lakes’.

‘Search for Enlightenment’, a sculpture of two bronze heads looking steadfastly skywards, a piece inspired during a trip to Africa, as Simon recalls: “I stood on a 240-million-year-old mountain and watched the 4.6-billion-year-old sun descend below the horizon. As the light diminished the 200 billion stars in the Milky Way began to glow in the night sky. The universe is over 10 billion years old and consists of hundreds of billions of galaxies. It is at that moment I began to grasp the narrowness of consciousness, the vastness of time and the transience of humanity.”

The Halcyon Gallery press release described the sculptures:

‘Two large bronze human heads stand next to each other, a male and a female, facing towards the Thames, their faces raised to the sky. The male is slightly before the female. The space within each cranium is hollow, through which the viewer can see the piece from an inside-out perspective, and move around it to view it from all angles, taking in the surrounding landscape and sky. The expressions on these faces are peaceful and accepting; this man and woman are in contemplation, absorbing great knowledge, at a point of realisation about their place in the universe’.

We watched as the two pieces were carefully transferred from the lorry that had taken them from the foundry in Wales.  A huge crane gently positioned them looking out over the river toward infinity. The installation was almost reverential in its tone. As the two pieces were unwrapped from their protective covers, it felt as though they were being given life, vision, and freedom. This was truly a remarkable moment. Simon Gudgeon was watching another wonderful example of his art finding a home in the public consciousness. The bronze ‘heads’ were turning the heads of walkers, tourists and joggers as they passed by on a warm October Sunday in London.

Even as the photographers were busily catching the occasion, the sculptures were becoming a part of the landscape, people wanted to touch them and some young children were very keen to get inside them.

Simon explained that the glorious, warm patination would change over time as all things change. “An important aspect of outdoor sculpture is that it is an ever-changing event. The different seasons, variable weather, the hours of the day, varying light highlighting different planes of the sculpture, all contribute to transform how the work will be seen. It is no longer static; it becomes part of the environment and changes with it.”

A smaller version of the monumental 2.2m high work was presented to the Duke of Edinburgh earlier this year for his 90th Birthday by Halcyon Gallery at Buckingham Palace, at the 24th Anniversary Dinner of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award World Fellowship.

Simon Gudgeon's Isis in Hyde Park

Simon Gudgeon’s magnificent bronze ‘Isis’ sits in Hyde Park next to the Serpentine, the first piece of sculpture to do so in 50 years. At its base there are 1000 plaques inscribed with the names of generous donors who have helped to raise £2.2 million to build the Isis Education Centre which is designed to enable communities and especially city school children, to enjoy and experience the wonders of nature and the importance of protecting and preserving the environment for the future. The Centre is right in the heart of the Park.

‘Isis’ has become a powerful symbol for the project and as the Egyptian goddess of nature and creation, Isis encapsulates the elements of the process leading to the opening of this Education Centre. The work has been achieved through the energetic efforts and shared passions of many supporters.

Paul Green (President Halcyon Gallery), Isis, Simon Gudgeon, Eran Akerman (Chief Executive, Halcyon Gallery)

One of the unique features of the Isis Project is its approach to fundraising for education purposes and marks a shift from a public funding model toward an exciting collaborative partnership around public art. In this case the innovation is the idea of Halcyon Gallery President, Paul Green who, along with Simon Gudgeon, gifted the large ‘Isis’ sculpture to the Park. Working with the Royal Parks Foundation and many other generous patrons and partners to raise the funds necessary to build the Centre, Halcyon also provides financial support for the continuation of the Isis Education programme over the first three years as well as the involvement of Gallery personnel in the continued developments at the Centre.

Children enjoying the dipping pond at the Isis Education Centre

So the Isis Education Centre has begun its work and the faces of the children who have already had an opportunity to experience what it has to offer are testament to its importance in fostering their awareness of the role of man in promoting a sustainable environment. It also marks a watershed in the dynamic relationship between art and society and the challenges of supporting important projects that can enhance lives.

The enthusiasm for the Isis Education Centre from those involved in its conception and realisation is matched by the esteem in which Simon and his work are held. One supporter describing the success of the project and the importance of Simon’s work, told me that “Simon sometimes does not really appreciate what he has achieved here.”

Simon working on 'Isis'

This blog is about Simon Gudgeon, the artist, the person. It is a dialogue with those who want to share in his creativity and passion. Art should speak to you the observer and you can communicate the experience of that art to others. Whether or not you have visited Sculpture by the Lakes (and of course you will feel that this is a must), you will see his work in many other places. The links from this blog will take you there and you can share in the journey of the artist as he develops and evolves, whilst he is continuously searching for the next challenge, the next dimension.

My medium is words and language and I work to create a script that reflects and shares the work of this talented artist across the social network.

Who am I? Already with the philosophical question. I am Kate Hall and one of the ‘strings to my bow’ is to write. I write about Art, Heritage and Culture and happily I consider myself a fan of Simon Gudgeon’s work which makes me feel good about doing this blog.

Simon Gudgeon 'Isis'

This blog is a conversation, an exchange of thoughts and ideas and I hope that those who love Simon’s work will join in. If you don’t know his work (not many out there!), now you can. Come and look at his art, feel it, experience it and tell the world what you think.