Among the new displays at Goodwood is a striking steel sculpture, Triton by Bryan Kneale, a work that forms a significant part of the focus that Cass in both Goodwood and London is giving to this veteran British sculptor. Kneale's work, compared either to Frink (born in the same year) or Armitage, remains comparatively unknown. The Cass London show of his latest sculpture and drawings has all the dynamism, buzz, and technical brilliance of a man ensuring we won't forget him this time around. All his long-standing interests in engineering, architectural and natural forms and the way these can metamorphose are here given striking new life. Kneale has produced many superb, monumental drawings of animal, bird and fish skeletons over the years and they have come to play a crucial role in the evolution of his sculptural ideas. A nice example is Angler Fish Skeleton, the fierce geometries of which find unmistakeable expression in the edgily aggressive forms of the high-relief aluminium sculpture Sparta. Subtitling his show ‘Idea and Realisation’, Kneale reveals that, at 75, his imagination is as challenging as ever.
Article by Nicholas Usherwood, first published in the May 2005 edition of Galleries Magazine
