The quiet discipline of shells
- Mandy transforms discarded natural materials into sculptural artwork
- Her craft is shaped by a patient and intuitive making process
- She aims to inspire people to reconnect with nature's calm presence
Mandy Blake creates intricate compositions from shells and natural fragments with a background in fine art and graphic design. "My practice began after a pivotal life shift that pushed me to evolve from spontaneous making into a deeply focused, disciplined pursuit," she says. Largely self-taught and guided by patience and intuition, Mandy assembles each piece like a puzzle, removing, reattaching and refining until balance and movement emerge. Her works invite viewers to reconnect with nature's calming powers. "In a screen-saturated world, my works offer a moment of stillness and reflection," Mandy explains. Placed together, each and every shell, selected for their unified form, complement the other in their natural beauty, colour, tone and texture.
Interview
- How did your path lead you to shell working?
- I studied fine art and graphic design, and I worked as a designer for 20 years. After my second child, I picked up acorn cups and began creating. Shells, dredged up by boats and collected in the Netherlands, became my work’s focus in 2018.
- How has your creative process evolved?
- I work daily, as my craft calls for me. My compositions used to be a lot more linear, but nowadays I am drawn to swirls and more complex forms, such as Van Gogh’s skies, which inspired me when I was younger.
- What do you hope your work brings to people?
- I have been told my work is calming and meditative. It offers stillness in a world consumed by screens and constant noise. My pieces draw attention to nature’s beauty. If you look closely, you fill find that each individual shell is like a painting. My shell work is a reminder to slow down and just be.
- What are you looking forward to exploring?
- I am curious to experiment further with discarded shells from the seafood industry, different materials and 3D technologies that will push my work further towards new natural approaches.
Mandy Blake is a rising star: she began her career in 2018
Where
Mandy Blake
