‘My work is born from a lifetime of Looking. Each of my sculptures tells a story which I hope you will share’
Neil Lawson Baker’s first career was as a highly successful London Dental Surgeon, having also qualified as a Doctor. He took up sculpture following his convalescence from Hepatitis B in 1987 to while away the hours. His surgeon’s hand-eye skills paved the way, assisted by Kees Verkade, the Dutch sculptor who taught him to model in wax. He was introduced to the master foundry man Eric Gibbard at the Burleighfield Foundry who had done work for the Tate Gallery, Elizabeth Frink, Lyn Chadwick and Barbara Hepworth. He also worked with Charles Pinellis at the famous Susse-Fondeur foundry in Arcueil. The bronzes he made were bought by his contacts and collectors across the world.
On his return to practice, public commissions flooded in but the work show in the gallery are his more intimate personal pieces. His wide ranging oeuvre reflects many artistic and literary themes. Mother Superior is influenced by Frink’s sculpture, Walking Madonna outside Salisbury Cathedral. Alongside this the tender Three Sisters, reflects Neil’s interest in both Chekov and Henry Moore. Seen as a group the pieces reveal him as an artist with a deep sensitivity to the human condition and an ability to understand the underlying principles of form taking them to a level of abstraction seen in the best tradition of Modern British Art.
His works can now be found in public places both in the UK and abroad. His sculptures may be seen in the entrance to the offices of the Houses of Parliament at Westminster; at British Gas Headquarters in Reading and Loughborough; in The London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange; near Albert Bridge at Sterling House on the River Thames; at the National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur; at Beirut University College in Lebanon and many other important sites. A recent work was commissioned by Seaward Properties and installed in Church Square in East Street Chichester, West Sussex. It is a bronze Mother and Child called ‘Nurture’
‘My work is born from a lifetime of Looking. Each of my sculptures tells a story which I hope you will share’
On his return to practice, public commissions flooded in but the work show in the gallery are his more intimate personal pieces. His wide ranging oeuvre reflects many artistic and literary themes. Mother Superior is influenced by Frink’s sculpture, Walking Madonna outside Salisbury Cathedral. Alongside this the tender Three Sisters, reflects Neil’s interest in both Chekov and Henry Moore. Seen as a group the pieces reveal him as an artist with a deep sensitivity to the human condition and an ability to understand the underlying principles of form taking them to a level of abstraction seen in the best tradition of Modern British Art.
His works can now be found in public places both in the UK and abroad. His sculptures may be seen in the entrance to the offices of the Houses of Parliament at Westminster; at British Gas Headquarters in Reading and Loughborough; in The London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange; near Albert Bridge at Sterling House on the River Thames; at the National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur; at Beirut University College in Lebanon and many other important sites. A recent work was commissioned by Seaward Properties and installed in Church Square in East Street Chichester, West Sussex. It is a bronze Mother and Child called ‘Nurture’
‘My work is born from a lifetime of Looking. Each of my sculptures tells a story which I hope you will share’
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