Gallery 2 Featuring Exhibitions, Events and Sculpture Case Studies
Derek Kinzett Life Size Wire Sculptures"The Inner Spirit Collection" 2007 - 2024
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"Artist in Residence", Hamilton House, Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, England.
Hamilton House Gardens are owned by Phil and Diana Berry and are situated in Sutton Coldfield, on the outskirts of Birmingham, England.
Phil & Diana have opened their wonderful Gardens to the public, as part of The National Gardens Scheme for 10 years.
Derek was appointed as "Artist in Residence" from 2021 - 2022, producing a total of six sculptures, to be displayed within Hamilton House Open Gardens.
"Woodland Spirit" Suspended Fairy in flight
"Ruth" The Reader, Seated
"The Moment" Seated couple, Phil & Diana
"Free Spirit" Suspended Fairy in flight
"Royston" The Gardener, Standing
The National Gardens Scheme has been opening gardens for charity since 1927, so by visiting an NGS garden you will be making a vital contribution to the nursing and caring charities the NGS supports.
Since its foundation, the NGS has donated some £50 million to nominated beneficiaries.
Hamilton House NGS garden open days are very special events. Whilst the main objective is to show visitors the extensive gardens, they also try to make it a great afternoon and/or evening out for all. A sort of garden party for horticultural enthusiasts with their family and friends. To add to the atmosphere there is normally music played by a string quartet and refreshments including tea, cakes and Pimm's punch.
Hamilton House have opened their garden's on 15 occasions in 10 years and have raised over £28,900 for the NGS charities. During this time, almost 4,000 visitors have passed through their gate.
Art In The Garden
The Garden for Phil & Diana has always been a constantly changing Art form in itself.
They decided to add other Art forms to the Garden to reflect their love of Music, Poetry, Painting and Sculpture, combining a variety of one off commissioned pieces, plus a series of stained glass and wood carvings.
Many of the pieces reflect something special in Phil & Diana's lives, from their beloved family with the wire sculptures of their parents Ruth and Royston, the poetry panel reflecting their daughters work, www.lizberrypoetry.co.uk and their much loved spaniels Edna, Norah and Martha.
A personal message from Derek
I would like to thank Phil & Diana for appointing me " Artist in Residence" at Hamilton House.
The year I spent working with them on their six sculpture designs was creative, inspiring and wonderful, their kindness, hospitality and generosity was overflowing throughout the period we spent together.
I also have to take this opportunity to pay homage to Phil & Diana's relentless passion and drive to achieve perfection in their garden, it's taken them many years, but I can confidently say they've done it.
If you are a keen Horticulturist and "Garden Art" lover, or you're simply looking for inspiration for your own garden, then Hamilton House gardens will be right up your street and I would thoroughly recommend you pay Phil & Diana a visit. The National Gardening Scheme, Open Garden dates are normally listed on The Hamilton House gardens website, so be sure to check before your trip. www.hamiltonhousegarden.co.uk
"Spirit of McLaren" The International Motor Show, Switzerland
" Spirit of McLaren" Life Size Wire Sculpture Commission and Installation McLaren automotive, The International Motor Show Geneva, Switzerland.
The "Spirit of McLaren" wire sculpture was commissioned by McLaren automotive as part of the McLaren 720S car launch, unveiled at the International Motor show Geneva Switzerland.
The clients sculpture brief was to create a muscular, athletic figurative sculpture in a sprinting stance, projecting speed, agility and power.
An extensive study of the world's fastest man "Usain Bolt" was carried out to achieve the look and feel of the final piece.
The finished sculpture was displayed within the McLaren hospitality suite at The Geneva International Motor Show and it was an absolute pleasure to create.
"Jorge" Sculpture Commission , Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England
"Jorge" Sculpture Commission Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England
"Jorge" was commissioned by a lovely Art loving couple based in Tewkesbury, North Gloucestershire .
The Design Brief was based on a photograph of a Bronze sculpture of a clothed seated man they'd seen whilst on holiday in Portugal. Using a photograph as a reference, I managed to produce "Jorge", complete with jacket, waistcoat and Portuguese hat. The jacket, trousers, waistcoat and shoes, were all sculpted using approximately 25 layers of 13 mm galvanised wire mesh, 7 layers for the skin tone of the sculptures face and hands and 15 layers for the sculptures shirt, folded collar and cuffs. I thoroughly enjoyed bringing the clients design to life and I think "Jorge" looked fantastic sat on his bench in the clients front courtyard garden area, approaching their front door.
All listed portfolio sculptures are available on a commission basis
"The Fairy's Wish" Sculpture Installation, Case Study, Oxford, England
"The Fairy's Wish" Wire Sculpture Commission and Installation Oxford, England
This was without doubt, one of the most exciting, challenging and rewarding commissions I've worked on for many years.
I was contacted by the commissioning client, requesting a site visit to Oxford to discuss a sculpture design idea he had in mind, which he wanted to mount on what he described as
a "Tree Trunk".
When I visited the site a few weeks later, it became clear that what the client had described as a "Tree Trunk" was in fact a 40 foot Oak tree.
The Clients had visualized a life size Fairy floating overhead amongst the tree canopies, rotating in the breeze whilst drifting through the woodland .
"Welcome to the world of client creativity, It's an amazing place"
So the vision for "The Fairy's Wish" was born and after consulting a number of engineering experts on how to rotate an 8 kg figurative wire sculpture attached to a 3 metre dandelion 360 degrees in a light breeze, work commenced on her construction.
The sculpture took two months to create and the finished piece was installed in May 2018.
We finished the installation about 7.30 in the evening and I have to say, one of the most rewarding moments in the journey at that point was, walking away to leave, turning back to take one last look and seeing the sculpture gently rotate in the evening breeze.
Solo Exhibition "Dragons, Fairy's & Unicorns" Lacock Abbey, England.
Solo Exhibition "Dragons, Fairy's & Unicorns" Lacock Abbey,Wiltshire, England.
When The National Trust invited me to curate a solo exhibition of my work in the grounds of Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire, I was excited & inspired to exhibit in such an historical and ambient location.
The exhibition was titled, "Dragons, Fairy's & Unicorns" it featured thirteen life size figurative wire sculptures, and to date has been one of my most successful solo exhibitions, with visitor numbers exceeding 15,000 people.
If you've never visited Lacock, I would strongly recommend it, as it is one of the most historical and untouched villages in England under the stewardship of the National Trust.
Although the Abbey has monastic roots, it was also once the home of William Henry Fox Talbot, the inventor of photography, and has also been the location for a number of films such as "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets","Robin Hood of Sherwood", Mariah Mundi and the Midas Box", the BBC production of "Pride and Prejudice" and the BBC's historical TV serial "Wolf Hall".
I thoroughly enjoyed my month at Lacock, I met some really interesting people during the exhibition, and I would especially like to thank all the amazing staff at Lacock for lending their enthusiasm and support to the exhibition. https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/
Solo Exhibition "Grange Park Opera" Northington, Hampshire, England.
Solo Exhibition "Grange Park Opera" Northington, Hampshire, England.
When I was invited to exhibit my work at The Grange, during it's two month Opera festival, I welcomed the opportunity with inspired and creative arms.
The exhibition featured five sculptures taken from "The Inner Spirit Collection","The Moment","Crystal", "Free Spirit","The Walk Of Faith" and "Mother Sprite".
The whole event was a wonderful experience, and each sculpture completely came to life within the gardens and terraces of this magical place.
I would like to thank Wasfi Kani OBE, for her kind invitation to exhibit my work at this prestigious event, Piers Tilbury for his graphic design brilliance and production of the exhibition brochures and Mark Stokes for his amazing (On location) natural light photography.
Since its inception in 1998, Grange Park Opera has performed to some 300,000 people with more than 50 productions and 450 performances. In 18 festivals, it has become a treasured feature of the international operatic landscape.
Grange Park Opera moved to West Horsley Place after the 2016 season, ready to occupy a new purpose built theatre that provides a permanent home for the company.
West Horsley Place is a 300-acre estate with a glorious sprawling 15th century house surrounded by formal gardens with secret corners, aged trees, box hedges and a majestic crinkle crankle wall. Behind the house, an ancient orchard opens into a glade: the setting for the new Theatre in the Woods.
A 99-year lease at West Horsley Place means a permanent home for the charity. The creation of a four-tier opera house modelled on La Scala, Milan, is probably the most thrilling thing happening in UK opera today. www.grangeparkopera.co.uk
The "Afterlife" Wire Sculptures "Loveland" Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
The "Afterlife" Wire Sculptures "Loveland" Amsterdam
The Netherlands.
The "Afterlife" wire sculptures were commissioned by Berlin based record company "KARMAT MUSIC" to accompany contemporary music soundscape duo "The Tale of Us" on their international tour.
The Sculpture designs were taken from the Afterlife tour logo & branding images.
"The Tale of Us" tour took them to audiences in Ibiza, Greece, Italy, Washington DC, Miami, Toronto, Chicago, New York, Paris, Germany, Marseille, Amsterdam, Belgium, Croatia, Serbia, Barcelona, Portugal, and Morocco.
There was a different type of science used in the construction of the After Life sculptures, as we had to take into consideration the correct weight distribution of each piece whilst suspended over the heads of the Tale of Us audience.
Sculpture Design Collaboration, Encode - Talent London
Commissioning Client: KARMAT MUSIC Berlin, Germany
"The Running Man" Life size wire sculpture, dedicated to Jamie McDonald
"The Running Man" Life Size wire sculpture dedicated to Mr Jamie McDonald
I first came across Jamie's efforts to raise funds for sick children's hospitals in the UK, in January 2014.
I was totally moved by this guys relentless drive and passion to achieve his goal. "This guy has totally embraces his "Inner Spirit"
If you get a chance, check out his website which is listed at the bottom of this page.
Jamie's Profile.
Jamie McDonald, against all odds, has become something of an adventurer. In 2012, he cycled 14,000 miles from Bangkok to his hometown Gloucester, passing through dozens of countries.
Along the way he was shot at, arrested and slept rough. Just two days after he finished the journey back from Bangkok; he made the decision to attempt the world static cycling record, which stood at 224 hours and 24 minutes. It was a challenge he’d conceived whilst cycling from Bangkok.
He finally stepped off the exercise bike set up within a marquee in Gloucester after pedaling for a world record breaking 265 hours – more than eleven days! Throughout both challenges, Jamie raised tens of thousands of pounds for the Pied Piper appeal.
As a child, Jamie was in and out of Gloucester Royal hospital for nine years with a rare spinal condition known as syringomyelia, as well as a very weak immune system, and the Pied Piper’s help was invaluable, he also spent a great deal of time at Great Ormond Street.
On March 9th 2013, Jamie began his attempt to run Canada coast to coast, more than 5,000 miles unassisted, jointly raising money in aid of UK charities Great Ormond Street Children’s Charity and the Pied Piper Appeal and children’s hospitals throughout Canada. He become the first person in history to run it alone, facing snow storms, -40°C temperatures and grizzly bears, all whilst pushing his belongings in a baby stroller nicknamed Caesar.
He updated his Twitter and Facebook profiles throughout, as well as recording videos he uploaded as he did throughout his cycle home from Bangkok.
He raised £60,000 for his two UK-based charities and $40,000 for children’s hospitals in Canada.
With their £30,000 share, Great Ormond Street Children’s Charity was be able to fund a member of the play hospital team for an entire year.
Jamie began his run at St John’s, Labrador and completed his journey in Vancouver, through mountain ranges, national parks and dangerous terrain.
To view Jamie’s final moments of his Canada coast to coast 5000 mile run, , in which Jamie single handedly raised £150,000. visit Jamie’s website listed below: www.jamiemcdonald.org which also include twelve videos chronicling the journey back from Bangkok to Gloucestershire and the amazing Canada challenge in full.
