Simon Hitchens
Simon Hitchens was born in 1967 and studied at the West Surrey College of Art and Design (1985-86) and Bristol Polytechnic Faculty of Art and Design (1987-1990). He has been exhibiting since 1991, largely in mixed shows, including the 'London Group Open' (1992, 1993 and 1994), Crane Calman, London (1995), the '20th Century Art Fair' at the Royal College of Art (1998) and 'Defining Times' at the Milton Keynes Gallery (2001).
Commissions since 1994 include sculptures for the Conquest Hospital, Hastings (2000) and a work for Sweet Street, Leeds (2002). He was invited to work at sculpture symposia by the British Council in Presov, Slovakia (1994) and Barichara, Colombia (1996). He also works regularly for Anish Kapoor.
Hitchens works in stone, but also uses the newer material of clear resin, the inherent qualities of which have given him the opportunity to extend his interest in the purity of form and the optical effects found in this crystal-clear medium. In his abstract stone sculptures he carves, shapes and polishes each piece individually by hand. He says: 'Although they look like machine-made and mass-produced objects, they are in fact all unique sculptures where the craftsmanship is paramount.' In a stance quite opposed to the so-called 'truth to materials' ethic championed by Henry Moore in the 1920s, the artist professes to have no reverence for stone, as his polished surfaces and extruded, plastic forms deny the nature of a static, solid material.
In contrast, Hitchens's clear cast resin sculptures are expressions of the qualities of the material. 'These symmetrical capsules or cylinders... suggest hermetically sealed capsules of elixir, purified air or water, held in suspension. They appear to be otherworldly, having a beauty and tranquillity that I find refreshing,' he says. 'I aim to create a visceral response in the viewer first, followed by a more thoughtful process of contemplation.'
artist portrait by Charlie Alcock