Phil Young: carving wood, as part of his distinctive sculptures, at his studio in Bristol

 

 

I've known Phil Young for quite a while now, in fact we went to the University of Plymouth in Exeter at the same time, studying three-dimensional design. It was great to catch up with him a couple of days ago and see what he's been up to.

Phil, as 'Dendrophile',  uses a variety of materials in his distinctive sculptures, often using carved wood to deceive the eye into seeing this material as having been distorted by different clamps, bindings etc.

'My work explores the tactile nature of these materials and our innate associations with them. I enjoy tricking the eye into believing wood has stretchy and squashy properties like flesh and how people react to this because of their strong connection to trees.'

I really like the way that Phil captures movement and distortion of the forms using the solid timber. Getting that sense of movement isn't always easy in woodcarving and he really gets it across well.

One of his pieces was recently shown in New York, which Phil seems to be taking in his stride. When not working on his sculptures, he practices his fire juggling skills and also works for a local college, working alongside students who need some extra academic help (such as those with Asperger's syndrome) with their creative studies.