Ant Beetlestone
Ant Beetlestone is a sculptor who works in the modern figurative tradition. He uses wood to make expressive statements about man’s relationship with nature, and how this is revealed. His work has a contemporary feel partly through the use of the chainsaw, with which his wood carvings are made. These industrial tools allow him to work fast but also show the considerable skill and sensitivity in his work. He says that carving with a chainsaw is much like drawing with charcoal, marking into the wood instead of the paper.
He studied at the Frink School of Sculpture where the emphasis on drawing and modelling from life gave him an appreciation of the modern masters like Elisabeth Frink. Since leaving art school, he has taught in London, then worked in restoration and produced public art.
He now works in his studio on an old fruit farm, where he lives with his family in the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire.
Selected Exhibitions:
Royal West of England Autumn Open
Jerwood Sculpture Park
Blackheath Gallery, London
Westonbirt Arboretum Sculptree
Amanda Aldous Fine Art, Hamps
Stoke Open- Highly commended
Showborough House- First prize (twice!)
Ruskin Mill, Nailsworth
Skyros Island Artist-in-Residence
Camphill Community Artist-in-Residence