Paul Vanstone studied sculpture at Central St Martins School of Art before completing an MFA in Sculpture at the Royal College of Art, graduating in 1993. He then worked in Italy at the traditional marble carving studios near the famous Carrera quarries, also working in Berlin and travelling to Rajasthan to learn India’s traditional marble carving techniques.
On his return to the UK, and for the next five years, he became an assistant to leading British sculptor Anish Kapoor and consequently works carved by Vanstone on Kapoor’s behalf have been exhibited at world-leading galleries, including the Tate Modern in London.
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Since then Paul has shown his work at a number of major galleries in London, including the British Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum, as well as galleries and sculpture gardens throughout the UK. He has gained a number of prestigious awards and commissions, among them the Henry Moore Award (1991) and the Lady Carrington Sculpture Garden Commission (1991 and 1996).
Statement
I carve sculpture from stone, the nature of the material dictating how each piece evolves. My fascination is with the hardness and light-reflecting qualities of marble and how this can be transformed to portray the curvature of the human body and the delicacy and flow of covering cloth. I use marble, onyxes and stone to portray this interest in the human form.
Website: www.paulvanstone.co.uk