WILLOW sculptures are the latest artistic addition to grace glorious Blackwell.

In direct response to the inspirational and glorious Bowness Arts and Crafts House, Laura Ellen Bacon - who works primarily with willow and other coppiced materials to create magnificent sculptural pieces - has created two dramatic curvaceous structures, bonded to the house and the retaining wall of one of the garden terraces.

Laura’s work is site-specific and ecologically sound; she creates large scale ‘morphing’ nest-like structures. She has, in her own words, ‘an intuitive response to the tactile possibilities of certain materials’ and her work focuses upon ‘the material, the environment of a site and a slightly ‘architectural’ sense of making.’ "My large-scale installations are almost always built on site, allowing me to form the works in a way that truly fits its location,” explains Laura. “I began making my early works upon dry stone walls and evolved to work within trees, riverbanks and hedges, allowing the chosen structure - be it organic or man-made - to become host. Over a decade into my work, my passions have returned to not only merging with dry stone walls, but to the powerful connections with architecture.”

Laura says that her work has to fuse with a building to succeed, both aesthetically and practically - and in Blackwell’s case it certainly does.

She adds: “The forms I make have such a closeness with the fabric of the building, their oozing energy spills from gutters, their 'muscular' forms nuzzle up to the glass and their gripping weave locks onto the strength of the walls. Whilst the scale and impact varies from striking to subtle, I relish the opportunity to let the building 'feed' the form, as if some part of the building is exhaling into the work."

Blackwell curator Kathy Haslam said that Laura’s installation has created an artwork out of Blackwell itself: “It is very exciting to be using the house in a totally new way.”

Laura says that nests intrigue her because they utilise existing structures, such as trees or architectural features: “Processes of accumulation also interest me, such as the creation of a bird’s nest or the build-up of driftwood on a riverbank.

“My use of materials is low-tech but intuitive, enjoying my chance to create work large enough to climb inside, or pass through in some way.”

Exposed: A Sculptural Installation runs until the end of September.