Where to see outdoor sculptures in Norfolk and Suffolk 2022

Irrespective of whether she’s operating in wood, charcoal, paint or metal, Cindy Lee Wright’s do the job is a celebration of the purely natural world – in particular the section of the environment she phone calls house. 

Not too long ago, Cindy’s emphasis has been developing substantial, out of doors installations in laser-reduce steel, this kind of as the eye-catching Tree of Daily life, which capabilities woodland creatures including hedgehogs, badgers, pheasant and leaping hares, and Earth Angel, a placing, seemingly floating winged figure, with a costume built from cascading leaves. 

Artist Cindy Lee Wright
– Credit history: Contributed

And this coming week she plans to start out installing a new do the job, Lifetime of Cley, at Norfolk Wildlife Trust’s Cley Marshes reserve. 

Cindy works as what she describes as ‘an virtually-entire-time artist’.  

“Even while I had planned from an early age to become an artist, I really educated as an actress instead and immediately after a handful of decades touring went on the review theology,” she clarifies. 

“I commenced making artwork when my young son, Eddie – who has Down’s syndrome – remaining university and started to be much more impartial and material. 

“I occur from a household of engineers, so operating with instruments will come normally to me, but it’s only in modern a long time that this has been directed in the direction of building art instead than household producing.” 

Her creative follow is an exploration of her spirituality, as nicely as a reflection of the pure entire world close to us. 

“I have usually felt quite connected and involved with and now come to feel increasingly dependable for the non-human wild planet,” claims Cindy.  

“I am married to wildlife writer Simon Barnes, who has a short while ago been researching and obsessing with botany, so I sense our comprehending is receiving larger each day.  

“Also, spirituality is very vital to me, which is why angels continue to keep popping up in my function,” she says.  

Earth Angel by Cindy Lee Wright
– Credit: Contributed

“Sometimes I think we all reside a significantly scaled-down lifetime than we want to, which is why I sense it is vital to make connections in numerous instructions, with each and every other, with the wild entire world and with the significant religious 1.” 

Cindy life in Norfolk, with spouse and children roots in Suffolk. 

“My relatives are from Suffolk, and my first residence was in St Cross, but I didn’t return until following my initially son was born 28 yrs ago. We lived in Peasenhall, so the move over the border into Norfolk felt like a betrayal at 1st! But there are no regrets. 

“I am so lucky to are living in this county. My household is in the middle of the marshes with the river Chet jogging past in the distance, so the wildlife is plentiful and inspirational.  

“This is what will make me want to test and seize and share the elegance of the wild entire world I experience and to want to enable to safeguard those people habitats and species I know are having difficulties,” she claims. 

It was throughout the pandemic that Cindy moved into laser sculpture and working with metal. 

“I am happiest doing work with wood, but for the duration of lockdown, Eddie needed my interest on a everyday basis, so I experienced to find a way to fulfill my sculpture commitments with out spending all day in a dusty workshop,” she states. 

Doing work with what she describes as a “limited palette and form” provides Cindy with some pleasing worries. 

“Laser sculpture is effectively about design and style,” she describes. “First, I do the job on the drawing, then transfer that onto software program. It’s a extensive approach, but quite enjoyable. Seeking to resolve the challenge of how to get the essence of a creature.

“The file then needs perfecting to make it compatible with a laser equipment. I don‘t very own one particular – they charge 1000’s and are continually updating and enhancing – I deliver the file to a steel fabricator and hope for the best!” 

Doing work with metal for out of doors sculptures indicates that pieces will continue to evolve as they expend time exterior in the components. 

“Most of the operate I do looks to be for outside spaces, which usually means it’s typically significant and difficult to put in,” states Cindy. 

“It’s delicate steel, so it’s not likely to rot in a hurry,” she carries on.  

“Of training course, the ones with a rusted patina will will need some awareness in excess of the decades to stop corrosion, but that’s fairly manageable.  

“Also, the rust has a innovative lifestyle of its possess. In the rain or early early morning, it’s strong and darkish, but in the center of a sunset looks like burning orange. 

“The great matter about laser profiles is that they can be reproduced and this suggests that it is attainable to make reasonably priced art.  

“I do truly feel that artwork should be for all not just an elite, but that is normally challenging to attain with the continuously mounting prices of products.” 

Artist Cindy Lee Wright doing the job on Lifestyle of Cley
– Credit history: Contributed

Cindy has been doing the job on Daily life of Cley considering the fact that past Oct, and it is enabled her to start off starting to be much more intimately acquainted with the Cley Marshes reserve by the altering seasons.  

The installation will function an avocet, barn owl, bearded tit, bittern, buzzard, curlew, heron, kingfisher, lapwing, tiny egret, marsh harrier, swallows, swifts, spoonbill, oystercatcher, pintail, tern, otter, water vole and frequent toad, nestled all over reeds and teasels. 

“Until not long ago, when my time has been taken up with assisting to handle the Sculpture Path at Potton Corridor, I visited each and every 7 days. It has been amazing having to know that quite unique and superb put,” suggests Cindy.  

“I feel like I have just scratched the surface and would like to continue to include extra and far more,” she continues.   

“I am hoping to be ready to convey the abundance of everyday living there as nicely as celebrating the achievements of the awesome Norfolk Wildlife Believe in.  

“To a informal visitor who isn’t a birder searching out around the sea of marshes and lagoons at Cley, it’s not immediately apparent that they keep so a lot magic.” 

Lifetime of Cley, by Cindy Lee Wright, will be on screen at NWT Cley Marshes from Thursday, July 14. 

The Tree of Everyday living is presently standing in the gardens of Otley Corridor and Earth Angel guards the cafe at Potton Corridor close to Dunwich.  

Cindy has smaller parts on sale at the Octagon Gallery in Diss, and at Ferini Gallery in Pakefield. 

She will also be taking portion in the Raveningham Sculpture Trail from July 30 to September 6 and From Avocets to Angels, a celebration of artwork impressed by wings, will be at the Aldeburgh Gallery from November 17 to 23. 

For much more facts about her get the job done see her internet site, cindyleewright.com and comply with her on Instagram @cindyleewright.artwork