The sculptures for Brightwells Yard are a series of ten large-scale sandstone figures that celebrate Farnham’s status as a World Craft Town.
Standing an imposing 2.3m tall and carved from Hill House Edge stone, each figure represents a different craft or industry associated with the local area. They are arranged in three small groups in the landscaped gardens of a mixed residential and commercial development. Each group is informally arranged as if in conversation or looking out across the open space towards the other sculptures.
“The first group (painter, glassblower, blacksmith, weaver) refer to crafts that I discussed with people during the development stages of the project and represent some of the diverse array of craftspeople that are associated with Farnham today.
The second group (wheelwright, ceramicist, cabinet maker) came from research at Farnham Museum. The cabinet maker is from the John Hutton painting depicting men and women making ammunition boxes during the Second World War at the Crosby Doors factory. The ceramicist is holding an example of Farnham Greenware, and the wheelwright is taken from George Sturt’s book the Wheelwright’s Shop, set in East Street.
The third group (hops, barley, brewer) are all associated with the brewing industry and are based on the archive of photographs in the museum.”
