Local Artist to Exhibit at Pitstone

Tessa Cole is a local artist, living on a farm in the Chilterns and working in a studio she converted from a nineteenth century granary. Having trained professionally under James Butler at the City & Guilds of London Art School, achieving a Fine Arts Diploma with Distinction and a love of figurative sculpture, she initially travelled to Italy and Greece, drawing and painting the fabulous archaeological sites. Later, on family holidays in Turkey Tessa found the many remarkable archaic sculptural sites and rocky landscapes a further and lasting source of inspiration.

Tessa works to commission on portrait busts and small garden sculptures, currently creating a series of dancers inspired by a love of ballet and the work of Degas. She works in either clay – subsequently cast into Ciment Fondu or Bronze Resin, or in plaster modelled directly onto an armature which is then patinated. Ciment Fondu and bronze are ideal for pieces commissioned to be permanently displayed outside.

Tessa will be exhibiting sculptures in Pitstone from 8-23 June, a joint exhibition with silver jewellery and photography by Cathy and John Timbrell. This is part of Bucks Arts Weeks – details at www.bucksartweeks.org.uk .

In July she will be exhibiting in St.Albans at Kingsbury Barn as part of the International Organ Festival, 10–20 July.

Recent sculpture commissions include portrait busts of children, a group of sheep and various dancers. Tessa is also currently working on painting and watercolour commissions for Christmas cards, wedding invitations, table names and the cover design for ‘Gardens near the  Church’ in aid of Buckinghamshire Historic Churches Trust.

Tessa welcomes all commission enquiries, ranging from portrait busts, 3-dimensional sculpture and reliefs (typically cast in Ciment Fondu or Bronze Resin) for the house and garden, to paintings of houses (typically watercolour and pencil) and examples of all her work can be found on her website www.tessacole.co.uk.