Gate, forged metal
Gate, stainless steel
Seat, wood & forged metal
Matthew Fedden
Matthew Fedden graduated from Leeds University with a degree in Applied Zoology. He undertook research into tropical rainforest ecology in the Carribean and Africa, and worked at the University of Science and Technology, Ghana before returning to the UK in 1989 to work with artist blacksmith, Alan Evans. He was artist blacksmith in residence at the National Waterways Museum, Gloucester from 1990 to 1992, during which time he also built his own workshop in the Forest of Dean. He has recently moved to a larger workshop in Gloucestershire.
Matthew's work encompasses both public and private commissions, and he specialises in working with architects and landscape architects on new buildings and public spaces. Recent commissions include: bridge rail, Castle Park, Bristol; street furniture, Westgate Street Precinct, Gloucester; street furniture, Trafford Park, Manchester; railings for the Gloucester and Tipton railway stations and seating for Walsall Railway Station; War Memorial Arch, Boston, Lincolnshire; gates and railings, Hackney College, London; seating and railings for the sea front at Hunstanton, Norfolk; spiral staircase for Cinderford Tower, Gloucestershire; and gates, fencing and seating for Portishead Primary School, Bristol. He is currently working with the Environment Agency in Hexham, Northumberland on a number of screens as part of its flood alleviation scheme, working alongside civil engineers to introduce more art and design to the project.
My work is an expression of design and an exploration of balance and shape within functional form. I aim to create pieces that are a joy to make, and where that joy is expressed clearly in them. I want to celebrate the making of the piece in its form. I am keen to work with other materials, and to collaborate with other artists with complementary skills.
Matthew Fedden, 2006