Supple Patterns Illuminate Bold Volumes in Oliver Chalk’s Sophisticated Wooden Vessels

Detail of a vessel from the ‘Pathways’ series. All images © Oliver Chalk, shared with permission

Hewn from solid hunks of found timber, Oliver Chalk’s vessels (previously) embrace the natural grain and gradients of different types of wood to reveal voluminous functional sculptures. Using remnants of fallen trees like ash, cypress, maple, and cherry, Chalk hand-carves bold ribs and lines redolent of contours on topographic maps. He takes cues from the distinctive characteristics of each piece of wood, responding to the specimen’s unique texture, hardness, hue, and innate patterns. Maple burl, for example, which is a growth in the tree’s bark that creates dense, swirling, eye-like motifs, led to an elegant piece peppered with small holes and knots.

Chalk has been working with timber for about three years, teaching himself various techniques and experimenting with different types of wood. He has just been awarded funding from the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust—an initiative that supports British craftspeople through education and apprenticeships—to explore new terrain: bronze. This fall, he embarks on a training program at SPACER with artist and foundry manager Stephen Melton to learn bronze casting and patinating techniques to recreate his thrown vessels in metal.

Chalk’s work is included in the group exhibition Earth Materials at Gallery 57 in Arundel, West Sussex, through June 10 and Spring Collection ’23 at The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden in Ockley, Surrey. Find more on his website and on Instagram.

 

Detail of a vessel from the ‘Earth Materials’ series

‘Earth Materials’ collection

Warped maple burl vessel

Charred surface on cypress

Cypress vessel in progress

Left: Sycamore vessel. Right: Detail of textured ash vessel

Vessels “One” and “Two” in the Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden Spring/Summer 2023 collection

Cherry vessel

Ash vessel

Detail of vessel “One” in the Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden Spring/Summer 2023 collection

Roughing out a large cypress vessel

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