moira ross.

Welcome.

Moira's sculpture is simple in form. Inspiration comes from life, be it plant, wildlife or human. She works between realism, impressionism and abstraction, so you may find a life-like apple, a blocky rabbit or strange beings created and displayed.

Occasionally there are some life size pieces but more often than not they will be bigger or smaller than in real life. Lollipop trees, various sizes of apples or a large seed are all possible with her ever changing ideas.

Moira mainly uses Maltese Limestone, a soft dusty stone that can polish up to a lovely shine using hand tools, sandpapers and buffing with a cloth. Closer to home, she likes to use local stone such as Bath or Chilmark Limestone but has been known to occasionally use Derbyshire Hopton Wood limestone.

About Moira.

I'm originally from just outside Glasgow and I enjoyed creating things from an early age. I remember making an apron and a hat at primary school then sewing things like a nightie (nightdress) or a dress for myself. In secondary school I gained an art 'O' grade (Scottish system) twice. I never really felt I had found 'my thing', although I did do pottery using a wheel which I really enjoyed.

Like many people, I had to 'get out and make some money' when I finished school so I got a job and just continued to make things for myself. After many years and a move to Salisbury I started a part time Art Foundation course, continued at the college, finishing with a HND in Fine Art, where I specialised in Sculpture.

I now had a better idea what I wanted to do but liked trying various types of mediums - stone, wood, willow before I went back to stone as I really enjoyed it. I got myself a studio and started making Sculptures. It took a while to discover that 'simple' was my style but I love an uncluttered look to things. During my early years of carving I discovered how to make Maltese stone shiny and my method was passed on to other sculptors.

I like demonstrating at shows for my stone supplier and helped show others how to carve stone. After a few years I felt brave enough to run workshops for adults, from one to one's up to groups of 8 in my studio and 10 at other venues. It's always been great fun and so rewarding to see people make something for themselves, especially that last moment when they are thinking why is this not shiny? After a little guidance they get the cloth out, with a bit of hard buffing and suddenly it's there!

In 2019 I gave up my studio as the environment around me had changed and it wasn't suitable for workshops anymore. This turned out to be fortuitous as it preceded a family member being taken seriously ill and then came the COVID-19 pandemic. Now I'm back enjoying making and exhibiting again with a view to getting a shed in the back garden.