Spadge Hopkins SOS committee member; WBA, NCAS and EAAF member is creating on a full time basis, informed by experience gained during a creative career that involved leadership, product design, the music industry and automotive engineering. Currently he tends to work in three dimensions and in metal.
His first mainstream public exhibition was in Ipswich in 2015 but he has been practicing and studying autodidactically, producing varied work for colleagues, friends and family since the 1980s.
Spadge’s first serious works were conceptual. The Machin(sic) series are made of found mechanical components in order to explore questions of value and are an expression of Spadge’s appreciation of the form and function of mechanical components that are so often unseen when they are performing their intended task.
His copper sculptures are variously figurative and explore two of the binaries of sculpture; volume and void; whilst playing with the use of light and shadow. Movement is a conscious theme in his natural history subjects whereas other pieces often concern mystery and the evocation of history.
A public art, rock-music themed commission for the City of Cambridge in 2016 and a continuing fascination with the subject, movement and shadow has led Spadge into producing a unique series of drawings of people laser cut in metal. These are lit in various ways and often move within the piece via small electric motors. Recently he has used the laser cutting technique to produce a series of animals some of which have been larger, outdoor sculptures.
Spadge has also curated a number of exhibitions. He lives and works in a rambling array of barns and sheds in Suffolk and has strong links with London, Cambridge and the West Country.
Sculpting in copper and steel at the moment. Natural history and iconic faces. Movement is often a theme either in the form itself or via electric motors. Natural light and shadow or projection and shadow often feature. Studio/gallery visits welcome by appointment.
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