Louise Allison
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I was born and brought up on the west coast of Scotland and have a great love of the natural world and the human form.
At first I was very drawn to sculpture, however, when I went to Camberwell School of Art in London I decided against sculpture and studied for a BA Hons degree in Graphic Design. After working professionally as a graphic designer in London for many years I moved to Oxford where I started up my own small graphics business, “Oxford Art and Design”.
After a full professional life as a graphic designer I retired from graphics a few years ago, and with the help and advise of some wonderful teachers and friends at The Phoenix Studio, Thame, and the Iron Down Sculpture studio, I have gone full circle and have now taken up sculpture which has become my passion. To me there is a great joy in working in three dimensions and I really love the fabulous medium of clay which is both forgiving and expressive and which I often find will take on a life of its own.
Right from the start I have been very interested in portrait sculpture. I am fascinated by the challenge of creating personality and expression in my pieces and I am learning all the time. Sometimes I work with live models and at others I work either from photos or out of my head, giving me great scope for innovation and experiment and helping me to go in different directions in what I choose to create. Its when Im working this way that the clay sometimes takes on a life of its own.
Although much of my work is glazed, I will sometimes add colour after firing with sprays and polishes to get the effect I want.
Each if my pieces is unique.
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