The warmth of the wood, the quality of the grain, and the life embodied in each and every tree, together with a love of the head as a sculptural form, are my inspiration. Working with the vagaries of the organic still living nature of the material and pushing the boundaries of its plasticity is my challenge.
The river Dart flows by close to the windows of Jilly Sutton's studio. Surrounding it are the copses and hills of South Devon. Such influences are to be felt in all her work and her choice of material, first and foremost wood, though casts of bronze or resin are made for longevity outdoors. For even when its subject is the human form, it is from nature that the inspiration of her sculpture arises, from wind, water and wood, where the growth of the trees and the swirls of the river water are reflected in the grain of the timber. It is in a natural setting that the finished pieces look most at home. Wood and its inborn qualities lie thus at the heart of all her sculpture. She carves large pieces of fallen or felled timber, enhancing the individuality of the grain through such processes as liming and sand blasting.
Starting her sculpting career whilst living in Nigeria, inspired by the carving (Benin bronzes and Ife terracotta heads) and the textiles she found there, she returned to England and the house on the banks of the Dart where some of her first works were inspired by wood sculpted by, and retrieved from, the river water, and by images of the 'Foliated Head' in history. She then trained at Exeter School of Art, but has always remained true to her love for working with wood. Her sculptures have been sold and exhibited internationally, and are found in private and public collections in the UK and abroad. Her carved head of the former Poet Laureate Andrew Motion was the first wooden portrait to take its place in the National Portrait Gallery's permanent collection. For this Sculpture by the Lakes exhibition, amongst other work she presents a Mater Dolorosa, a 'lockdown' piece of both sadness and serenity, surely reflecting the time of its creation.