Artist Profile
For as long as he can remember, Tim has been drawn to stone. From childhood, where he spent time exploring and collecting stones at Pukerua Bay, to adulthood, when he left his full-time job to pursue sculpting. Honing his craft at art school before working with greywacke and benchtop, Tim soon discovered jade; a moment that saw his passion for stonework and creative potential take form.
He has developed his own style which is inspired by his ancestors, natural and urban aesthetics, as well as artefacts both contemporary and ancient. Through that inspiration he tries to push the conventional design boundaries of modern stone carving culture. Working out of his home studio space in Waipawa, Central Hawkes Bay, he gives thanks and pays respect to the stone and his ancestors. He describes himself as feeling grounded, knowing if it wasn't for them he wouldn't be here to have the privilege of working the stone.
I think I was about 26 when I started carving. I was looking for something a bit different, something more soulful, as I’d been doing the same job for a long time. So, I decided to go to art school at Learning Connexions in Lower Hutt as it had a little stone carving studio. It was a place I could be creative, there was no theory work, it was all practical, and what mattered was the number of hours you put into your work and the amount of work you produced. So I played away in that studio for a long time! From there, I met Ric Moor who took me under his wing and I travelled down South to Greymouth to join Tai Poutini Polytechnic where he taught students how to carve greenstone. After Polytec, I returned to Paekakariki to set up my own studio, and I now carve from my home studio in Hastings.
Ever since I’ve been able to pick things up, I’ve collected beach materials and stones everywhere I go. Maybe it was this passion that eventually led me to jade. There is something really cool about a piece of jade compared to other materials, it holds a translucency even when the light doesn’t go through it –a warm glow that draws you in. It’s hard to explain my passion for the stone, but that makes the connection special in itself. I also think there is the lesson of impermanence that draws me to stone carving. As human beings, we’re not around for very long, whereas stone has taken much longer to form and will remain here much longer than us – but not forever. As a carver, I feel like I am attached to this moment in the stone’s life.
I guess I look at everything that surrounds me, both nature and the urban constructs that are part of my everyday life. Part of my ancestry is Ngāi Tahu, so I often think about what surrounded my ancestors, and what would have influenced the taonga they made back then. By reflecting on my past, drawing on the present and contemplating the future and the impact that we’re having on the planet, is what drives my designs. I also often work with thicker pieces of stone as you can create more depth to your design, which means more shadows, surfaces and sharp lines. There’s something about carving a piece which has a sense of depth, it has a certain energy which makes it feel more alive.
My work naturally progresses with every piece that I make, whether that’s improving my techniques or developing aspects of my designs. I do really enjoy making custom pieces and definitely see myself doing more of these in the future. The challenge with custom pieces is being able to incorporate the meanings or design aspects a customer wants their piece to convey, while maintaining my own aesthetic and flavour.