Artist Sophie Harden and sculptors Fred and Helen Gordon are collaborating for 'The Birds and the Beasts' exhibition in the Cotswolds this week.

The exhibition is hosted at The Compton Gallery at Cassey Compton, near Withington - a unique boutique art gallery in the heart of the Cotswolds.

This exciting collection of work will encompass a range of birds and wildlife.

Sophie Harden's subjects hail from her passion and love for animals, country pursuits and travel. As a keen equestrian, Sophie surrounds herself by horses, a theme seen running through her work. Travel is another huge source of inspiration, with African animals at the centre of recent exploration trips to Kenya and Namibia, together with a newfound desire for capturing the energy, suspension and movement found from birds in flight.

Sophie said: "Birds and the Beasts is an exciting new space where we will collaborate for an exhilarating show. I have not exhibited since 2019, pre-pandemic and pre-children so this brings together the best of my work from the past four years, using new mediums, skills, and techniques."

Fred Gordon is an award-winning young British sculptor, passionate about wildlife, conservation, and the natural world.

With minimal formal training, Fred has learnt through combined experience and total commitment. Fred has travelled widely to study his subjects first hand in their natural environment, drawing from the British countryside and experiences further afield, including Sri Lanka and a three-month artist residency in Limpopo, South Africa.

Working directly from life, Fred sketches, photographs and where possible creates small maquette studies in front of the animals. Looking at their anatomy and behaviour, he takes this source material back to his studio to work up the pose and form in the final pieces.

Fascinated by the casting process, Fred worked for several years at the foundry casting the bronze first hand. Whilst at the foundry he started experimenting with the foundry casting wax, folding, and layering sheets of the wax to create form. With this layered effect, working quickly with the heated plates of wax, there is a spontaneity and an element of fragmentation, hollowness, and abstraction in the work.

Fred said: "I am very excited to be showing my sculpture in an exhibition that we have been able to curate ourselves. It will be a great opportunity to show a large collection of my portfolio all at once in the same space."

Helen Gordon has been interested in Art her whole life and agrees with the sentiment that the wise artist realises that they are forever a student. Based in Somerset, Helen has been working and honing her sculpting skills for some 20 years.

With an acute sense of the ridiculous in any given situation, she endeavours to capture the humour in whatever piece she is working on. If a viewer stops for just one moment to view, reflect and above all smile at a piece she has created, then she feels she has succeeded in her work.

Helen said: "I am so looking forward to this collaboration of artwork, bringing together three artists in the one space to encompass Birds and the Beast. What could possibly be better?"

The Birds & The Beasts runs on Thursday 16th, Friday 17th & Saturday 18th November, 9am - 6pm and Sunday 19th November, 10am - 4:30pm

The Compton Gallery, Cassey Compton, GL54 4DE