Mackenzie Thorpe
“I follow my feelings - a bright light in the pit of my stomach - I follow that feeling throughout the process of making a piece of work. I stay strictly to the feeling, the rest will take care of itself. After drawing, painting, printmaking and sculpting I have a great awareness of what I do and just try to produce my best work every time.”
Mackenzie Thorpe
“Structurally I took inspiration from deficit interiors; broken plaster board exposing wooden beams, in keeping with the industrial aspect that influence a lot of the work. I then started to think about opposing ideas - ‘new and old’ and ‘life and death’ were the original working titles and this is where the theme developed,"
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Mackenzie Thorpe was born into a large family in 1956 and was the oldest of seven children. He was raised the post-war industrial town of Middlesborough, England. Thorpe started working in the shipyards but with encouragement from one of his friends, he decided to pursue his passion, drawing and painting as he chose to study at the Cleveland College of art and Design. He then moved onto getting a Fine Arts degree at the Byam Shaw College of Art in London where he graduated in 1982.
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... strewn across the plaster and firmly in the foreground is chaotic life and messy interpretations. The pop culture references are deliberately ambiguous and even random with some much darker ones too. I liked the idea of contrasting this against the palette background in something a bit more zen, clean, golden and rich”
“I follow my feelings - a bright light in the pit of my stomach - I follow that feeling throughout the process of making a piece of work. I stay strictly to the feeling, the rest will take care of itself. After drawing, painting, printmaking and sculpting I have a great awareness of what I do and just try to produce my best work every time.”
Mackenzie Thorpe
Read More
Mackenzie Thorpe was born into a large family in 1956 and was the oldest of seven children. He was raised the post-war industrial town of Middlesborough, England. Thorpe started working in the shipyards but with encouragement from one of his friends, he decided to pursue his passion, drawing and painting as he chose to study at the Cleveland College of art and Design. He then moved onto getting a Fine Arts degree at the Byam Shaw College of Art in London where he graduated in 1982.
The Sculpture Master
Mackenzie Thorpe loves creating sculptures with clay to mould as a form of expression. Working in three dimensions, Mackenzie brings life to the compelling sculptures. Celebrating 35 influential years as an artist, Mackenzie has always casted his stunning sculptures in bronze, stainless steel or resin, whilst pondering on a variety of different sizes as he looks for originality, every time. The temperament of his characters always remain a shadow of his current self, showcasing the very traits that Mackenzie stands by in compassion, grit and determination. His critically-acclaimed, 'Love in the Forest'sculpture, has been a beacon of his charisma which transcends into the timing of his creative process, long but with a huge emphasis of 'quality over quantity' - You can see the piece in it's entirety or macro shots below.
MACRO SHOTS
Mackenzie Thorpe's work is wide-ranging from the optimistic 'duffle coat boys' to more challenging work focusing on isolation and man's struggle. Much of his work depicts his childhood growing up in Middlesbrough where he first worked in the shipyards, 'Three Times the Love' focuses on the time away from isolation and the intense responsibilities of providing for a family, with particular emphasis on using the consequential time with loved ones.
MACRO SHOTS
'The Fastest' has been rendered in pristine stainless steel for a luxury finish, using pastel as his prime medium, it generates an immediate response in terms of the mould, as Thorpe manoeuvres, the ideal sculpture starts to come to fruition. As the Official artist for the Tour De Yorkshire section of the wider Tour De France event, 'The Fastest' is an acclaimed sculpture that was produced for the campaign as a marketing scheme for the grand race.
The Creative Process
For Mackenzie Thorpe, any sculpture starts with an idea or image in mind, which will then quickly start to be put onto paper - He will make dozens of changes and adjustments before doing a final drawing. Continuing on the process by working with clay to work out how it will look. Thorpe will then work with a model maker on the first market. There are always changes along the way, he is only satisfied with the work when it works from every angle, and highlights the message and emotion in every piece, it is, after all, a huge investment. Finally it is cast, this is also a very long and detailed process, choosing patinas, colours etc. with some sculptures taking about a year to complete!
MACRO SHOTS
During his 30-year career, Mackenzie Thorpe has achieved global success with all corners of the world. However, Yorkshire remains his home and biggest influence as he pays dividend to the hills, dales and forests where he grew up by the banks of the river. 'The Seeds of Love' is a similar concept to 'The Love Picker'where the wooded surroundings and child-like charisma of his character is there for all to see, intelligently, without the use of facial features or emotions.
MACRO SHOTS
Mackenzie Thorpe creates another 'Art from the heart' piece as a stainless steel classic marks the foundations for his most recent 'The Love Picker'. Combining tenderness with fervency through his abstract depictions of children, Mackenzie's newest piece shows the eager mind of a child with an outdoorsy mindset, where he or she gracefully picks the hearts surrounding her as the metaphor that love DOES grow on trees becomes the subject line.
THE SCULPTURE
MASTER
Mackenzie Thorpe loves creating sculptures with clay to mould as a form of expression. Working in three dimensions, Mackenzie brings life to the compelling sculptures. Celebrating 35 influential years as an artist, Mackenzie has always casted his stunning sculptures in bronze, stainless steel or resin, whilst pondering on a variety of different sizes as he looks for originality, every time. The temperament of his characters always remain a shadow of his current self, showcasing the very traits that Mackenzie stands by in compassion, grit and determination. His critically-acclaimed, 'Love in the Forest'sculpture, has been a beacon of his charisma which transcends into the timing of his creative process, long but with a huge emphasis of 'quality over quantity' - You can see the piece in it's entirety or macro shots below.
Mackenzie Thorpe's work is wide-ranging from the optimistic 'duffle coat boys' to more challenging work focusing on isolation and man's struggle. Much of his work depicts his childhood growing up in Middlesbrough where he first worked in the shipyards, 'Three Times the Love' focuses on the time away from isolation and the intense responsibilities of providing for a family, with particular emphasis on using the consequential time with loved ones.
'The Fastest' has been rendered in pristine stainless steel for a luxury finish, using pastel as his prime medium, it generates an immediate response in terms of the mould, as Thorpe manoeuvres, the ideal sculpture starts to come to fruition. As the Official artist for the Tour De Yorkshire section of the wider Tour De France event, 'The Fastest' is an acclaimed sculpture that was produced for the campaign as a marketing scheme for the grand race.
THE CREATIVE
PROCESS
For Mackenzie Thorpe, any sculpture starts with an idea or image in mind, which will then quickly start to be put onto paper - He will make dozens of changes and adjustments before doing a final drawing. Continuing on the process by working with clay to work out how it will look. Thorpe will then work with a model maker on the first market. There are always changes along the way, he is only satisfied with the work when it works from every angle, and highlights the message and emotion in every piece, it is, after all, a huge investment. Finally it is cast, this is also a very long and detailed process, choosing patinas, colours etc. with some sculptures taking about a year to complete!
ART FROM
THE HEART
During his 30-year career, Mackenzie Thorpe has achieved global success with all corners of the world. However, Yorkshire remains his home and biggest influence as he pays dividend to the hills, dales and forests where he grew up by the banks of the river. 'The Seeds of Love' is a similar concept to 'The Love Picker'where the wooded surroundings and child-like charisma of his character is there for all to see, intelligently, without the use of facial features or emotions.
Mackenzie Thorpe creates another 'Art from the heart' piece as a stainless steel classic marks the foundations for his most recent 'The Love Picker'. Combining tenderness with fervency through his abstract depictions of children, Mackenzie's newest piece shows the eager mind of a child with an outdoorsy mindset, where he or she gracefully picks the hearts surrounding her as the metaphor that love DOES grow on trees becomes the subject line.
The Progression
After an in-depth Q & A with the sought-after sculpturist, Thorpe talked history, career highlights and how he is paving the way for a bright future as he continues to add valuable pieces to his distinctive space. As he implements his “Art from the heart” ideology in every piece he creates, there is large emphasis of love and warmth built into his artworks. Ranging largely, both with scale and price, as he likes to create something for everyone, He has become one of the UK’s biggest selling artists with his career highlight receiving a commission from Queen Elizabeth II, presenting the finished piece to her personally - Such a grand achievement is telling of his influence within the wider sculpturist space, and testament to an influential future, inspiring both clients and other artists alike. It is, just the beginning for Mackenzie Thorpe.
THE
PROGRESSION
After an in-depth Q & A with the sought-after sculpturist, Thorpe talked history, career highlights and how he is paving the way for a bright future as he continues to add valuable pieces to his distinctive space. As he implements his “Art from the heart” ideology in every piece he creates, there is large emphasis of love and warmth built into his artworks. Ranging largely, both with scale and price, as he likes to create something for everyone, He has become one of the UK’s biggest selling artists with his career highlight receiving a commission from Queen Elizabeth II, presenting the finished piece to her personally - Such a grand achievement is telling of his influence within the wider sculpturist space, and testament to an influential future, inspiring both clients and other artists alike. It is, just the beginning for Mackenzie Thorpe.
