Love Constrictor

‘Constrictor’ (or ‘Lesser Love Constrictor’. I’m still not settled on a title yet) is the latest piece in my ‘Never let You Go’ series of sculptures; a series in which I’ve been making hand-stitched (because Lycra/elastane is a bugger to sew using a sewing machine), stuffed, fabric sausages that are each trapped within the tight embraces of mostly elongated, rib cage-like, vine structures.

 

'Constrictor' sculpture by Wayne Chisnall

Constrictor is all about fear, desire and growth. It can be seen as representing the fear of losing someone, and of holding on so tightly to them that it restricts that person’s growth or development, and makes them want to break free from the relationship. Also, I just think that the sausage bulging between the vines ‘limbs’ looks amusing, and I like the contrast between the vivid pink of the smooth fabric and the textured earthy tones of the vines.

detail of  'Constrictor' sculpture by Wayne Chisnall

Early on in the project I made a small test piece using a cotton fabric but after I'd hand stitched it, stuffed it, and inserted it into the vine structure that I'd prepared for it, I found that it didn't have the right amount of 'bulginess' between the vine's stems, that I was looking for. Hence the switch to a stretchier material.

3 views of 'Constrictor' sculpture by Wayne Chisnall

 

Secret 7 Auction – Artists Revealed 2024

Now that 2024's Secret 7 has taken place I can reveal that the 7” single record sleeve I designed for the charity auction was number 167 of 700, for the song ‘Skipping Like a Stone’ by The Chemical Brothers (featuring Beck).

front of  The Chemical Brothers' Secret 7 'Skipping Like a Stone' record sleeve, designed by Wayne Chisnall

If you're not familiar with Secret 7, here's the concept - the organisers of the project take 7 tracks from 7 musicians and press each one as a 7" single, 100 times. They then invite artists and designers to interpret the tracks in their own style and create one-off record sleeves for the individual 7" vinyl records. The resulting 700 1-of-a-kind sleeves, containing the 7" vinyl records, are then exhibited anonymously (that's where the secret part comes into play) at NOW Gallery and can be purchased via an online auction. Proceeds of the auction go to War Child UK, who help support children in the World’s conflict zones.

rear of The Chemical Brothers' Secret 7 'Skipping Like a Stone' record sleeve, designed by Wayne Chisnall

This year’s 7 tracks were Aurora's A Different Kind of Human, Stop This Flame by Celeste, Skipping Like a Stone by The Chemical Brothers, Hozier's Swan Upon Leda, Pipes of Peace by Paul McCartney, Lullaby by Siouxsie And The Banshees, and We Sell Hope by The Specials. 

unused, alternative rear of The Chemical Brothers' Secret 7 'Skipping Like a Stone' record sleeve, designed by Wayne Chisnall

Horned God Orifice Box

This small box sculpture is primarily inspired by one of my earlier sculptures – a wall-mounted, low relief sculpture, simply called ‘Orifice’ (because of its carved wooden aperture) that I made 8 years earlier in 2002.

 

'Horned God Orifice Box' by artist Wayne Chisnall

The other influence for the piece is the figure of Cernunnos, the horned god from Celtic mythology. The HornedGod is also one of the two primary deities found in Wicca and some related forms of Neopaganism, representing the male part of the religion's duotheistic theological system - the consort of the female Triple Goddess of the Moon or other Mother goddesses. As you can see from the photos, I used small branches to allude to the horned element of the god in question. Even though it’s wood emerging from wood, I like the way that the flat dimensions of the box structure contrast with the organic forms of the ‘horns’.

 

The Cernunnos-type antlered figure or horned god, on the Gundestrup Cauldron, on display, at the National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen

Evolving out of a long series of small, wheeled box sculptures (that were themselves a progression from my earlier box tower sculpture, The City), Horned God Orifice Box is the first of these small box pieces that dispensed with the magnified glass window, and instead adopted the carved wooden orifice.

 

'Horned God Orifice Box' by artist Wayne Chisnall

As well as the obvious sexual interpretation of the orifice element (as manifest in the top section of this piece), my main interest in the device, lies in it being the portal between the internal and the external.

 

'Horned God Orifice Box' (rear view) by artist Wayne Chisnall

The actual inspiration for the original 'Orifice' sculpture came to me around 1999/2000 (when I was working as a cycle courier in London) as I saw a van drive past me with a puncture hole in its side, and I noticed how the metal around the puncture had taken on a strangely organic appearance, not too dissimilar to the swollen and raised skin around a small cut that I had on the back of my hand at the time. It's strange where and when inspiration for artwork can come from. Maybe if I hadn't spotted that van at that particular moment in time, a whole body of work wouldn't now exist.

 

'Horned God Orifice Box' by artist Wayne Chisnall

Title: Horned God Orifice Box. Dimensions: 41 x 37 x 23.4 cm. Materials: wood and metal. Date: 2010

A Brief History of Magnet

I’ve lost count of how many exhibitions my toys tower sculpture, ‘Magnet’, has been in. However, some of my favourite shows that Magnet has appeared in, that do instantly spring to mind, are 2017’s 'The Toy Box: From Pop to The Present', at the Civic, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, 2015’s 'Toys (Are Us)', at the Crypt Gallery, below St. Pancras New Church, Euston Rd. London, my 2014 solo show, 'Dreams of Being Batman', at the Vaults Gallery, Waterloo, London, the 'States of Reverie' exhibition at Scream gallery, Mayfair, London in 2011 (this one is partly more memorable because of the number of famous people that turned up to the opening party, probably because the gallery was owned by two of the sons of Ronnie Wood from the Rolling Stones), and 2006’s Royal British Society of Sculptors’ ‘Contemporary Sculpture Show' at the Rollo Gallery, Islington, London.

 

'Magnet' by artist Wayne Chisnall, at 'Toys (Are Us)' exhibition, Crypt Gallery, London

'Magnet' is part of a series of four wheeled tower sculptures (the others being The City, Book Tower and Fetish); each relating to a different aspect of our relationship with material possessions, and how our psychological attachment to large quantities of physical objects limit our freedom and mobility.  

'Magnet' (detail) by artist Wayne Chisnall

Originally titled 'Toy Tower', I renamed my sculpture 'Magnet' after its first showing when it became evident that its powers of attraction seemed to work on children and adults in equal measure. On the first day of Magnet’s first exhibition the person invigilating told me that he had looked over to where my sculpture should have been, only to find that it had disappeared. Apparently four little boys had managed to sneak the piece out into the street before being chased off by the invigilator, who wheeled the sculpture back into the gallery.

'Magnet' at 'States of Reverie' exhibition, Scream gallery, Mayfair, London

Magnet is now in the permanent collection of the Black Gold Museum (which was originally due to open in July 2022) in Saudi Arabia, which aims to provide a narration of the history of oil during human life by showcasing more than 200 contemporary pieces of art. The museum, which is the first of its kind in the Kingdom, will be inaugurated in partnership with the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Centre (KAPSARC) at the centre’s headquarters in Riyadh.

 

Black Gold Museum, King Abdullah Petroleum Studies & Research Centre, Riyadh.

It's odd not having Magnet around anymore as it's one of the earliest sculptures I created (way back in 1999) and had been a colourful presence around the place for over two decades - especially since most of my later sculptures tend to lean towards the brown end of the colour spectrum. Two compensate for its absence I think that I might create some new, brightly coloured sculptures. I already have a few ideas but, not wanting to jinx anything, I’ll won’t go into any details about them until nearer the time of their completion.

'Magnet' at Royal British Society of Sculptors 'Contemporary Sculpture Show', Rollo Gallery, London

'Magnet' & friend at 'Affluenza' exhibition, St. John St. Clerkenwell, London 2009

En-garde

‘En-garde’ is one of the pieces from a line of what I like to call my minimal intervention sculptures. These are sculptures I've made from found materials, where I've done little actual manipulation of the objects themselves; Instead, I either mount and display a piece of material in pretty much the same state as I found it (letting its intrinsic qualities speak for themselves) or I put together two or more found objects/materials to create an altogether new object.

'En-garde', minimal intervention sculpture by artist Wayne Chisnall

This piece is made from an old dead rose bush, where I removed the soil to expose the roots, cut away the top section in a nice straight line (a few inches above what had been ground level) and inverted it. I love the sense of balance in this piece, almost as if it is maintaining a stance in readiness to spring into action, hence the title.