Here in Cilcain we are very lucky to boast that we have our own resident sculptor, Nick Eames!Having graduated with a degree in sculpture from Maidstone College of Art in 1982 (under the tutelage, amongst others, of Antony Gormley), Nick ran his own mould making, casting and restoration business in South London, before moving to Merseyside in 1991, where he worked from a city centre studio in Liverpool, as well as lecturing part-time in Fine Art and Sculpture at the Bolton Institute.
On deciding to relocate in 2002, Nick eventually settled in Cilcain with his wife Liz, and their two children, James and Lucy, after seeing and falling in love with the village and the surrounding countryside, and the children were enrolled into the local primary school, Ysgol-y-Foel.
Nick has been involved in the Old School Yard Community Garden conversion outside the village hall which has been taking place over the past year, and besides constructing the stone element of the fantastic bench in this garden, he has generously gifted one of his sculptures, ‘Buddies’, for this very special community space.
When walking through the village on their way to visit St Mary’s Church or the millennium woods, the children of Ysgol-y-Foel are encouraged to ‘buddy up’, and this was the inspiration behind this work.
The sculpture bears the thumb prints of the staff and pupils who were present when James and Lucy were leaving the school and later, in 2016, extra thumb prints were added to represent the community (one of those is that of our much-missed David Johnson).
The sculpture was built in clay in Nick’s studio in Cilcain, and then moulded and cast in high alumina cement, thanks to a generous sponsorship from Hanson Cement of Padeswood.
It was finally installed in the Community Garden on Saturday 4th August 2018, by a team including Nick, Liz Eames, James and Lucy, Tim Johnson and Jon Bateson.
‘Buddies’ is a graceful and moving piece of sculpture which sits with a quiet presence in its space.
Thank you Nick, for this wonderful addition to our village.
