10 years since the unveiling of The Heanor Wings & Wheel Sculpture

In 2010 Rachel was commissioned by Amber Valley Borough Council to create a gateway sculpture in the town of her birth.

Heanor in South Derbyshire has a rich industrial history, from textiles and hosiery to coal. The sculpture sits on the corner of the old site of I R Morley's, a textile manufacturer established in 1795 whose premises in Heanor employed over 1000 people until it closed towards the end of the 20th century.

I R Morley's logo featured a wheel set in a pair of wings titled the Flying Wheel and was the first company logo added onto a piece of clothing.

The sculpture takes inspiration from this story and presents a wing either side of the sculpture which is punctured by a large wheel representing industry and regeneration.

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Learning New Skills

Over the course of the last four months I’ve been learning CAD (Computer Aided Design) alongside the architecture students at Nottingham College as part of an Artist residency. Being a very handy person it was quite a challenge to create on a computer rather than use my hands.

One of the challenges set by my tutor was to complete a task that was asked of me during a recent commission, to create a computer drawing of my proposed sculpture so that the planners could see what the sculpture would look like before it was created. The actual task at the time had to be outsourced and it made me wonder if this could be the first of many requests. Challenge accepted!

The task felt very daunting at first but as the weeks went by I began to get more and more confident with my newly acquired skills. The results aren’t perfect but I feel I created a good digital version that does not look too dissimilar to the actual sculpture. See what you think.

Here are the results; L-R The finished Sculpture, sketch created on Sketch Up, a pencil sketch.

Sculpture due for Unveiling

All the elements of the sculpture have been coming together over the last few weeks. A 2 tonne block of Derbyshire sandstone has been selected from the quarry which has been given a clean cut across the top and bottom ready to form the plinth of the sculpture. The four outer sides have been left natural to give a contrast with the delicate bronze piece.

I’m really looking forward to seeing the sculpture installed and can’t wait to be able to share images with you, but for now heres the plinth awaiting a bronze sculpture.

New Commission - Salt Brook Heritage Trail

An exciting new heritage project, set up by local community group Friends of the Salt Brook Trail, Hatton, to rediscover and celebrate Hatton's impressive industrial past.

Friends of the Salt Brook Trail, Hatton, is working with People Express to create an informative and inspiring heritage experience for all ages. The project will involve a series of landmarks, sculptures and installations that tell the surprisingly impressive story of the industrial heritage of the Saxon village of Hatton.

The project will capture oral histories of those who have worked in and been affected by the change, growth and loss of the industries. The local community is actively involved in researching the heritage and designing and making sculptures for the trail. 

Excerpt taken from The Friends of Salt Brook Heritage Trail 2018 calendar.

For further info please visit www.people-express.org.uk  

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