Clare Ferguson-Walker interview

Why did you become an artist – have you always been an artist?

I was obsessed with drawing and making plastecine figures from early childhood, I used to use my Dad’s torch at night under my covers to carry on with my work, my parents even took me to see a psychologist at one point as they were so concerned, fortunately I was diagnosed with a high degree of creativity! I’ve had a few dead end jobs along the way to bring in money, but I get ill quite quickly if I’m not able to continue with my artwork, I stop sleeping. I don’t think I’d be able to do anything else, it is an integral part of my being.

Are there any current or dead artists that you still take inspiration from?

I remember buying my sister a Salvador Dali poster as we were both totally fascinated by his work and spending a long time admiring the skill and clarity of his style, I was also exposed to a lot of Monty Python as a child and loved Terry Gilliam’s cartoons. Currently I love Beth Carter’s gorgeous sculptures and Nicola Hick’s work is also really inspiring. There is also an Australian sculptor called Patricia Piccinini whose uber life like creatures are simply breathtaking.

Tell us something about you as a person that is separate from the artist, or are the two totally integrated?

I am (or at least try to be!) very conscientious when it comes to dealing with other people, I strongly believe that unless you have walked in someone else’s shoes you can’t possibly judge someone else’s behaviour, therefore I always aim to see the best in people from the offset.

What is the most rewarding thing about being an artist? What does being an artist mean to you?

I suppose the most rewarding thing is when someone parts with their hard earned cash for a piece of my work! Sounds cynical I know, but it actually totally validates the whole process, it means that they genuinely loved a piece, it moved them and communicated with them on some level, and it also means that I can carry on with my practice! Being an artist is a really tough job, I could spend my time churning out cheap affordable tat that might earn me a quick quid, but actually I choose to stay true to my own imagination, I don’t worry anymore about what others will think of my work, and that to me is being a true artist, whatever medium you are working in, truth to one’s own ideas is the most important aspect.

Can you describe a typical day in your studio, what does your working environment look like?

It’s a total mess in my workshop! I only tidy up when I can’t move anymore! My making time is so precious to me, that I spend it all making, tidying up is way down the list of priorities! On a working day I get up, check my emails, get the kids to school, then get down my workshop, the radio goes on, and I get stuck in. If I’m really focused, literally a whole day can go by without me even stopping for lunch. So much of the process is labour intensive though, the spark of inspiration comes through at the beginning, and then its really satisfying at the end! The in between bit is all hard work, and you have to really focus and stay utterly determined to complete. Sometimes I’ll go back out to my workshop in the evenings and carry on until the small hours of the morning.

Which came first, the medium or the subject? Are you settled on these or is it an evolving journey.

I’ve always been drawn to the human figure as a starting point, and I’ve always found clay really exciting, so I think they have just developed together really, I’m pretty comfortable in my practice now, and I think I have enough ideas to last me a lifetime, but I’m not totally closed to new mediums. I do paint as well, but I think I just have more confidence with the 3-dimensional.

Do you have unfulfilled personal or artistic ambitions?

Yes loads, I’m utterly driven, I want to travel the world with my art, I also love puppets and would love to set up a puppet theatre company one day. I’m in an band too, and would love to share our music with a wider audience! I could go on, I’m probably verging on manic in terms of my creativity, I must be a bloody nightmare to live with!

Do you have a favourite story?

Very difficult to choose one as I love literature and storytelling, but the one that jumps to mind is Phillip Pullmans, “His Dark Materials” trilogy, so multi layered, I’ve read and re-read those books, and every time new dimensions rise to the surface, stunning piece of literature.

Is there an element of madness in you or your work?

Yes without a doubt, I don’t walk around with my pants on my head! But scratch the surface and there’s a lot of chaos in my mind, I have to work hard to switch off at night, as I can be a bit plagued with artistic visions, but hey when you are producing tangible objects or images to back up those visions, it seems to be pretty socially acceptable! So my madness has found an outlet, which is brilliant.

What are your indulgences?

I’m a fairly clean living person these days, I over-indulged far too much in my younger days. If it can be called an indulgence, I love dancing and go out 3 to 4 times a week to dance classes, including break dancing! I love it!

What made you start this collective of artists?

I was sitting in front of the computer one night, looking at various galleries on-line and it just struck me like a lightening bolt that I could organise a show of my own, I got really excited by the idea of controlling the theme and choosing the artists. And I just took it from there.

How did you find people with a common theme but different styles and media… conscious or accidental? 

I have been lucky enough to meet some fantastic artists through my career, mostly at different group exhibitions. I am drawn to artists whose work I like, simple as that, and it seems that the type of work I go for all have similarities running through them, i.e work that is drawn directly from the imagination and the sub-conscious, that is what excites me. So I had a rich source of artists to choose from and fortunately they all agreed straight away to be a part of this show and I really hope we can go on to work together again.

Your sculptures are striking shapes in their own right but the addition of paint really makes them come alive. When and why did you decide to mix the media?

It was something I started at college, I made a life sized sculptural triptych of myself metamorphosizing into a frog, I wanted it to look as realistic as possible, to give it an extra edge of shock value I suppose. So I painstakingly painted all the skin tones and the skin of the frog, I was really pleased with the outcome, and I suppose I’ve just continued with that idea, not necessarily always to increase something’s life-likeness but to add an extra dimension of aesthetic beauty.

You have a lot of narrative in your work and you are also very articulate in your written description… where does the story telling come from?

I think words are akin to clay actually, they can be moulded to form concepts, ideas, they can shock, amuse and break hearts. I’ve always written creatively and used to teach creative writing. Again it started when I was a child, I used to write poems to express my feelings, and I never really stopped, I’ve had several published over the years, and have won a few competitions.

Why did you choose View Art Gallery and Bristol to approach for an exhibition?

I am good friends with another Artist whose work is represented by View, Anne Goodfellow, she recommended the gallery. And Bristol seems so vibrant to me whenever I visit, there’s always so much creativity happening around the city, it seemed like the perfect venue.

We have had great success with a number of Welsh artists over the past few years. What is it that stimulates such imagination and creativity in Wales?

Blimey maybe there’s something in the water! There are more artists in West Wales than anywhere else in the country apparently, so maybe there really is some kind of ancient creative energy pulsing around looking for people to channel it!

Are the creatures that you create all from your imagination or do they start off from historical or fictional characters and evolve?

They are mostly from my imagination, although I do draw on characters from folklore and myth at times, I’ll always make them in my own imaginative way though.

Is your work at all autobiographical? How does it relate to your own personality and experiences?

I would say that my work is very autobiographical, most often though I’ll have a vision, and it might not mean that much to me at first, and then after it has been made I can look at it, and start to interpret it, as one might do a dream, and then meanings will start to reveal themselves, so its like my sub-conscious communicating with me, I’ve been reduced to tears before when looking at my own work realising what it’s about. I’m then sharing those messages with others, and hopefully some people will gain something from that. I worry sometimes that’s its all a little self indulgent, but hey it has to be better than making bombs!

Thank you.