Derek Winstanley
wood and stone sculptor
contact:
media/area of specialty
I work with domestic and exotic hardwoods and sometimes stone to create free-form sculptures that bring out the natural beauty inherent in the materials. What to many may be waste products, such as bark and sapwood, become integral parts of the design and character of the sculpture. The wide range of natural wood colors provides an artist's palette without staining or artificial treatment. As its name suggests, bloodwood is deep red, holly is the purest white wood, ebony is black, and rosewood ranges from purple to cream. Mesquite wood has an extremely hard, almost black core with lighter surrounding sapwood, embedded in which is a very rugged-textured bark. Spalting occurs when wood is in the early stages of decay, but can produce beautiful blue, gray and brown markings. If I had to use one word to describe many of my sculptures it would be biomorphic - life forms.
artist statement and biography
Woodwork has been a hobby for 40 years. I have no formal training in woodwork or art. I grew up in Wigan, a coal-mining town in northern England and started being creative with scraps of wood when I lived in London. Time spent in Canada, Africa, the Middle East and the American West have greatly influenced my views of the world and my artwork. My qualifications are BA and MA (geography) and DPhil (climatology) from Oxford University. My main interests are global and regional climate change and water-supply planning. Now retired, I am Chief Emeritus of the Illinois State Water Survey, where I served as Chief from 1997 through 2008. Prior to that I served as Deputy Chief Scientist in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Washington, D.C. and as Director of the US National Acid Precipitation Assessment Program in the Executive Office of the President. I have also worked at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado, Environment Canada in Ottawa, the Anti-Locust Research Center in London and as a volunteer in The Gambia. I have a twin sister and am married with family in Maryland, Colorado, New Mexico, England, Germany and Australia.
gallery
Click on the thumbnails below to see the full images. All rights reserved. Images may not be used without the artist's permission.
Derek Winstanley's "Prehistoric Dolphin with Modern Technology," signature image for the 2008 Boneyard Arts Festival. 
