"The Fruit of Time and Tide"

I am over the moon!!! My pear has won the 2013 Charman Prize People's Choice Award!

Creating this pear was a true labour of love. For weeks my mother and I trekked up and down the horribly steep hill to the beach with arms full of cedar, bay grape and casuarina driftwood. Then, we spread out the hundreds of pieces and began. I had an image in my head and slowly, it became a reality. I carefully selected each twisted branch and one by one found their perfect place. It was a bit like assembling a jigsaw puzzle - many pieces found their rightful place incredibly quickly, others were a little more resistant, and some did not want to play at all and I returned them to the pile on the ground. My mother is the power tool expert so she helped me drill the holes and screw the pieces in place. Just under three months later I decided that it was finished. That decision might also have been reached as my Wabi Sabi exhibition was due to open just ten days later and I still had a few other canvases that were yet to be finished. 

I had originally prepared another piece for the Charman Prize, but at the last minute decided to enter The Fruit of Time and Tide instead.

So thank you so much to everyone for your kind words, your encouragement and for voting for me!