Lot 8 , Bernard McGuigan, (b.1956), Communication/Conversation Piece, 2014-15, limestone on hardwood base, 45 x 20 x 20 cm.

Bernard McGuigan
(b.1956)
Communication/Conversation Piece, 2014-15
limestone on hardwood base
45 x 20 x 20 cm.
£5,000-6,000
British sculptor Bernard McGuigan began making sculpture at the age of 16, inspired by a Modigliani work at the Tate. He has continued to carve his contemplative, often tender, forms and figures directly by hand from stone ever since – from alabaster, limestone, slate and sandstone. His poetic, allusive titles invite personal readings of, for instance, the work here made of sandstone from the Forest of Dean.

McGuigan has a clear affinity with major 20th-century artists including Gill, Hepworth and Moore, writes Dr Sally Dormer, medieval art historian at the Victoria and Albert Museum. She goes on to note that “his work is indebted equally to the traditions of the more distant past. The spare clarity of Archaic Greek Korai and Kouroi informs his figurative compositions, together with an expressive linearity reminiscent of Romanesque historiated capitals and portals.”

McGuigan has exhibited widely and his work features in private and public collections, including the Forbes Foundation, USA; University College Hospital, London; Sir Christopher Ondaatje; Sheila Hancock; the Bank of India, London. Current projects include Songs Set in Stone, a museum-based project with singer-songwriter Bev Lee Harling. He lives and works in Hastings