john joekes

For John, each sculpture captures a moment – each is a compression of time: of the longevity of the material, the artist’s hand, and the patination of each piece over time by the viewer’s touch;  each sculpture is an island of memory. His series of marble sculptures at on form 14 explores this.Another aspect of John’s work involves the cut letter and how the viewer  responds in reflection and in an acknowledgement of meaning, which is revealed by walking in an anticlockwise circle around the ‘stele’. As John says, “An individual letter can have beauty and a poetic sound – letters combined create knowledge: each word is a journey of understanding.”BiographyBorn in London in 1950, John Joekes was a pupil of George Kennethson and later studied at Camberwell School of Art. He worked as a typographer in Paris while continuing his art, then refined his technique whilst working as a carver, banker mason and fixer mason at Chichester Cathedral.John uses these traditional stone carving techniques to make subtle and elegant sculptures. He uses lettering and elements of design as a thread throughout much of his work, combining this with abstracted shapes and forms, poetry and history.John has had numerous solo and group exhibitions in London, Bath and Bristol among others, and has curated and organised many shows.