Friday 11 December 2009

an introduction to Nicolas Pain, marine wildlife sculptor

When I wrote my first blog entry back in September I wrote that I had 2 passions in my life - diving and making jewellery.  When Nick, my other half read this he was not impressed, and so this entry is dedicated to him. 


Luckily for me, Nick is also obsessed with Scuba diving and when he's not seeking treasure with his underwater metal detector he is busy making bronze sculptures.  His work is inspired directly by the marine wildlife that he encounters whilst diving - his first piece is this fabulous Octopus - inspired by a years diving when he encountered these remarkable creatures on numerable occasions both in the UK and abroad.  The Octopus is bronze, created using the ancient lost wax process, and then patinated to give it a wonderful deep green colour.  The base (which is separate) is cast from a huge beach pebble found on Barmouth beach - it is made from marble resin and hand coloured. It is so realistic - many people think it is real!

The octopus on display at the dive show....


My personal favorite is this pair of Seahorses.  They look so delicate yet are solid bronze and so surprizingly robust.  Editions are strictly limited - only 24 of these will ever be made.  Nicks other sculptures are a diving Dolphin and a fantastic Cuttlefish

His current project is a pair of Hammerhead Sharks swimming around  a base in the form of a coral reef.  The bronze Sharks are finished and the base approaching completion - Nick is not one for half measures and each tiny coral is being carved by hand before being applied to the base.

Nicolas’s work has been exhibited with the Society of Wildlife Artist’s at their annual exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London.
His work can also be found permanently on display at the Number Four Gallery in St. Abbs.

If you are interested in any of Nicks work, please email me at rose@aquamarinesilver.co.uk

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