Anyone who knows the John Lewis organisation, will know that employees are known as 'Partners', and within the Partnership there is a great sense of belonging amongst the staff. When I was commissioned recently to design and produce a series of 7 decorative pieces for their staff hotel and activity base in Bala, my brief was to (principally) use local materials and that my work should reflect the rugged nature of the local geography.
I had a really awkward setting for one piece, in that it was a narrow slate mantle shelf in an entrance foyer, and with a large mirror directly over it. My design concept was a plinth, the same size as the shelf and in ebonised oak to match it, with a series of figures standing on it.
Here's the prototype....
....it doesn't really show the outline of the 'face', but the following photos will. This one is 15" (38cm) tall and it's meant to represent a human figure, whilst remaining anonymous.
The group shows that no matter how diverse people are, in terms of colour, height, build etc, as 'Partners' there is a common element, hence the decorative finish to the centre of each figure, whilst the diversity of the human figure is also displayed through the range and colour of timbers.
The decorative finish is scorched and scoured beads. Some have been left plain, some with lime wax and some with verdigris wax, whilst there has also been a smattering of various gilding creams over most of them. It's been great visiting the hotel in recent days and seeing people playing the game of deciding which of the figures represents each of their colleagues, but nobody wants to admit to being the short, fat one.
I really like the way that the mirror enhances the piece, making the gathering look larger.
C&C always welcome....Les
