Nichola Theakston

British, born 1967

Nichola Theakston’s work is inspired by animal form, and she aims to explore and understand elements of our shared consciousness.

Theakston has established herself as one of the UK’s foremost contemporary sculptors working within the animal genre. Her art foundation course at Leeds Jacob Kramer was followed by a Bachelors degree in Fine Art from Exeter University and a masters at Cardiff University. Since beginning to sculpt in ceramic and bronze, she has exhibited widely across the country and in Europe and is collected enthusiastically by many who appreciate her exceptional natural ability and skill, coupled with sensitivity and awareness of her subject.

“My journey with bronze patina is still evolving. I feel I’ve scratched the surface only, but I love the chaos and control. The torch, the chemical and the application offer me a creativity akin to the paint and paper on which I began my art education many years ago…the mystery and excitement offered by the elements has a commonality with the kiln process, and my expanding knowledge and honing of craft that ceramic practice involved has stood me well.”

Besides exhibiting at many of the country’s leading fine art fairs Nichola has work selected and exhibited annually for ‘Wildlife Artist of the Year’ in London, raising funds for endangered wildlife. Commissions include designing and making trophies for Lush Cosmetic’s ‘Lush Prize’, rewarding initiatives within the world of science and lobbying toward bringing animal testing to an end.

Primates are an obvious and compelling subject and portraiture is a vehicle often used to express feeling and emotion. There is a classical thread running through her work in the formal approach taken to the understanding of subject, combined with a looser and more expressive, painterly application of surface on the clay. She is collected enthusiastically by many who appreciate her exceptional natural ability and skill, coupled with sensitivity and awareness of her subject.

She exhibited with Sladmore Contemporary in 2017 and has since been part our ongoing exhibition programme, in the gallery and at art fairs.