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Philip Kennedy at Verrocchio at work on ‘Troppi’ sculpture 2001 |
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Philip Kennedy - stone sculptor
Tuscany residency 2001
At the time of my residency at Centro Verrocchio in 2001, it had been twelve years since I had completed my Fine Art Degree. I’d had limited success previously, but after the residency I’ve been much more successful with residencies, commissions and the specialist teaching of stone-carving. I am grateful to the Juliet Gomperts Trust and the Gomperts family for giving me the confidence to be more ambitious in my artistic career.
I used the residency primarily as an opportunity to spend a month producing artwork, unhindered by other work commitments. The situation of the Centro is ideal for stone-carvers with its location so close to Siena and Florence, where there is so much excellent stone carving from the past to see. There is also in Italy a wide variety of stones to choose from, apart from marble there are alabasters and travertines, two stones I was to utilise during my stay.
My plan was to study the work of the great sculptors from the past; Michelangelo, Ghiberti, Verrocchio, Donatello and Pisano, but also to immerse myself in the environment of Tuscany (specifically Casole D’Elsa) to inspire my own stone-carving, taking my work in unexpected directions. The work I produced illustrates this, the piece ‘Stemma’ was my version of the stemmata (stone heraldic shields) on the walls of the town hall in Casole D’Elsa and my piece ‘Troppi’ was a contemporary homage to Etruscan funerary monuments.
Subsequent to my residency, I have completed a marble self-portrait, put into practice some of the practical knowledge taught to me by Nigel Konstam and I am now teaching my stone-carving skills to others. I feel the work I am currently producing is the most mature and informed work I have ever done, all because of the kick-start to my career the residency in Tuscany proved to be.
