Lines of Beauty, The Foundling Museum, 40 Brunswick Square, London WC1, until 6th September 2015
The Foundling Hospital Court Room
©The Foundling Museum
The Museum’s Foundling Hospital Court Room is one of the wonders of the Museum. It was saved when the original Foundling Hospital was demolished in the 1920s and then restored to become part of the new building where the wonderful plasterwork, together with the original furniture and furnishings, can still be fully enjoyed and appreciated.
Geoffrey Preston
modelling flowers in clay, 2015
© Nick Carter
The Court Room’s plasterwork was created in the 1740s so imagine how exciting it is to see that this sculptural form is still practised today by Geoffrey Preston and his team. He and the team are also responsible for restoring some of the 18th century stucco ceilings at Uppark and elsewhere. These and other projects are shown through photographs and mouldings reflecting both traditional stucco and modern methods. It is worth remembering as you enjoy this engaging exhibition that stucco is modelled by hand without any use of moulding or casting so each piece is unique!
Geoffrey Preston working on a clay model based on a Tintoretto painting of Bacchus,
Venus & Ariadne, 2013
© nickcarterphotography.com
Geoffrey with a selection of his modelling tools
©Mark Girvan at Buddy Creative
Tim Forrest's E & A 