by Greg Freeman

Sculptor Sean Henry has revealed the identities of his three new figures that are coming to Woking town centre. ‘Walking Woman’, above, clad in black, will stride down Commercial Way, while ‘Standing Figure (Man)’ and ‘Standing Figure (Woman)’, top, will stare at each other within an atrium at the new Victoria Square development.

The news came during a hugely interesting tour around Sean’s studio during a Zoom session organised by The Lightbox art gallery in Woking. Talking about ‘Walking Woman’ he said: “There’s an air of positivity about her. She has this inner confidence; I hope that comes through.”

‘Standing Figure (Man)’ and ‘Standing Figure (Woman)’ will be seven feet tall, and will look at each other in the main atrium space of Victoria Square when it is completed. Sean said: “I’m excited by this … it will be a meeting place … I’m hoping that this will bring a lot of people into Woking.”    

A further piece, ‘Catafalque’, is returning to Woking after first appearing in Jubilee Square in 2017 during a town-wide exhibition of Sean Henry’s work organised by the Lightbox, and also spending some time outside Salisbury cathedral: “He’s very, very non-confrontational, because he’s looking at the sky.”  

Sean Henry is always claimed as a Woking boy, although he actually grew up in Pirbright, and now lives in Hampshire. He started making little clay figures at school at the age of 14, and sold some from a stall in Guildford High Street. He received a D in Art A-level, but secured a foundation degree place at Farnham School of Art, before taking a BA in ceramics at Bristol Polytechnic from 1984 to 1987.

He is remarkably open and accessible, and during his Lightbox talk he expanded on his beliefs, saying that for him “colour and light is what sculpture is about. I’m trying to reference life, and colour is an integral part of that”. He wanted his sculptures to relate to “the lived experience”. 

Sean, whose works are displayed all over the world, spoke about a couple of his other sculptures in striking situations in England –  the 10-foot ‘Seated Figure’ on the North York Moors (“it takes on a life of its own, depending on the weather”) and ‘Couple’, on the shore and out at sea at Newbiggin in Northumberland, “ a really unusual project” concerned with coastal erosion and a new £10m breakwater on which the Arts Council wanted a sculpture placed.

Painted sculptures outdoors that have to endure all weathers present a certain challenge. Sean has been using a marine paint usually employed for protecting boats and buoys. “The challenge is keeping the paint very thin, because you want the sculpture to look as it did when it was just clay.” He aimed to dress his figures in “neutral” clothes, and dispensed with any accoutrements, such as handbags, trying to whittle things down “to the core of someone’s being”.

His main influence is the 20th century Swiss sculptor Alberto Giacometti. He also spoke of Ron Mueck’s famous work ‘Dead Dad’, of which he said “its altered scale is the key to its success, and to engaging our empathy”.   

Sean Henry concluded his talk by saying how much he was looking forward to the completion of Woking’s Victoria Square development: “I can’t wait for it to be open and functioning.” He pointed out that Woking has the biggest Sean Henry collection in the world, “or will have by the end of this year”.

Truly something to be proud of, to be mentioned in the same breath as the Martians and The Jam!