Giving a talk about the new Downs bench to the Clifton and Hotwells Improvement Society in Bristol

Last Tuesday, The Clifton and Hotwells Improvement Society (CHIS) met for their Annual General Meeting. I was invited along to talk about the bench that they commissioned and which was installed on Clifton Down earlier this year.

After the society business was concluded, the chairman Brian introduced me and I spoke for a while about the different subjects carved on the bench and the stories around researching them. There was a slideshow of images to illustrate it.

As well as talking about these subjects, I gave a very brief demonstration of relief carving techniques and answered questions. 

It seemed to go very well and several people came up afterwards and chatted about their different experiences of carving. I learnt a few interesting things too! Thank you to CHIS for commissioning me to make the bench and for inviting me to talk at their AGM. Thanks also to M. Shapland, who took the photos on this post.

Where are the carved spiders hidden on the bench in the children's playground on Clifton Down in Bristol?

If you've been searching for the spiders on this bench and can't find them all, you're probably not alone. Some of them are deliberately carved to be hard to find...

However, if you're looking for a map straight to each one, I'm going to have to disappoint you. That would be far too easy! The carving of the purseweb spider really doesn't count as one of them either.

Instead, here are some clues for you to give it another go:

Spider 1:

This spider is the biggest and doesn't look quite like the others. It lives on coral in the end but is well camouflaged and hard to spot.

Spider 2:

This spider must have been a favourite of Isambard Kingdom Brunel; he included it on his bridge.

Spider 3:

This spider likes to read about Mr Brunel.

Spider 4:

This spider hides under the Suspension Bridge.

Spider 5:

This spider guards a screwhole that is part of the oak's history. It lives on the edge.

Spider 6:

This spider is guarding your back when you sit down, from behind the rest.

Spider 7:

This spider hides almost beneath a leaf.

Spider 8:

This spider is on top.

Spider 9:

This is a shellfish spider.

Spider 10:

This spider likes to give backrests support.

There you go, ten spiders... good luck and happy hunting!

The bench in the children's playground at Clifton Down has been installed!

Last Friday, I went to the Downs with a group of the estates team from Bristol council to fit the large oak bench that I've been working on for about two years.

It took about five and a half hours altogether to install it and members of Clifton and Hotwells Improvement Society (who commissioned the piece) came to see it, as well as Francis Greenacre (who represented the Downs Committee and helped a lot with the design) and Libby Houston (who is represented on the bench and also allowed me to use some of her poetry).

Just before the installation,  I was shown the offshoot of the 'Poet's Tree' next to the playground where the bench now stands. This black poplar also grew next to the spot where Peter Gabbitass (who is represented on the bench) sold his poetry. The original tree was cut down about twenty years ago, but recently a shoot from the stump has succeeded in growing to become a mature tree.

 

Thanks to the council team for all their help. I'm very happy with the bench and hope that many others will enjoy it too!

More of Peter Gabbitass' great grandchildren come to see the Downs bench

After the visit by John in February to see the image of his great-grandfather Peter Gabbitass carved into the Downs bench, I have now welcomed three more of the poet's great-grandchildren to my studio to see his portrait.

A couple of weeks ago, Heather, Steve (aka Michael) and Heather's husband Fred came to visit.

They told me how Peter Gabbitass was a carpenter and joiner before deciding to become a poet and that the the Windsor chairs that he made at his workshop in Worksop, Nottinghamshire are now very valuable and sought after. Although he was not a rich man when he died, he left the money that he had to his gardener.

Last week, Eric and his wife Stella also dropped by. It's been real pleasure to share the carving with members of the family and to hear more about the man himself from them.

A surprise visit from Peter Gabbitass' great grandson, to see his ancestor carved on the Downs bench

As I was working today in my studio with music playing on the stereo, I didn't see two people patiently waiting for me to look up. It was a visit from the great-grandson of Peter Gabbitass (the 'Clifton Poet') whose likeness is carved into the Downs bench that I am currently making.

The visit was a complete surprise to me but a very welcome one. John was very interested to see the carving of his great-grandfather and it was a pleasure to give them a sneak preview of the rest of the bench as well.

It is getting closer to completion! The bearers are now all carved. The last one to be made has been a crinoid (also called a sea lily), which would have lived in the seas of the Carboniferous Period around 350 million years ago. What became the limestone underneath the Downs was laid down during this time.

Here are all three bearers, depicting a crinoid, a brachiopod and a colonial coral: