Maggie Cullen

Maggie Cullen was born in Hastings in 1967. She studied three- dimensional design at Middlesex Polytechnic (1988-91) and is currently working for an MA in Visual Theory at the University of East London. Maggie Cullen's early work was centred in ceramics, and as she began to make sculpture in other materials she found a need to discover a more philosophical base for her work. The course in Visual Theory has provided access to both philosophy and psychology which she is beginning to find helpful in moving her work forward. She is particularly interested in Walter Pater's Epiphanies, and in the realisation that it is possible to experience intense moments of revelation or profound perception which seem more real than everyday experiences.

Maggie Cullen lives and works in Hastings, East Sussex. Living near the sea since childhood has had a significant effect on her work and is essential to her well-being - to her spirit. Experiencing the qualities of light and space found on the south coast of England is necessary to her vision, and is particularly important in her recent work in plastics. She also acknowledeges the influence of artists such as Anish Kapoor, James Turrell and Richard Wilson, both for their intellectual engagement in their work and for the calm qualities conveyed by their sculptures and installations.

Maggie Cullen has exhibited her work regularly since 1991 and has already, in her early career, had four solo exhibitions. She hopes in the winter of 1998-99 to show her work in Mumbai, India, where she plans a glass beach installation. This project is part of an artists' exchange and has been organised by the participating artists.