Within a Fragile Skin

Oak burr, Portland stone under a glass dome
Hand carved original
Height 20cm Width 12cm
This piece is currently available, please contact me for price and shipping options.

I have carved several octopuses in the past and they always prove to be a technical challenge. This piece, carved to fit perfectly in every direction within a glass dome, was possibly the most difficult carving that I have tackled to date. “Within a Fragile Skin” is carved from a single piece of English oak burr, mounted on a piece of Portland stone and held within a glass dome.

I’ve always been fascinated by octopuses and their close relatives, such as the nautilus. The inspiration behind this piece comes from the octopus’s soft-bodied nature, which allows it to conform to almost any shape or space it chooses to enter. This fluid, gelatinous quality gives an impression of great vulnerability. Sadly, that sense of fragility feels more relevant today than at any other time in their 300-million-year history, due to the damaging influence of the planet’s relative newcomers — humans.