Helen Frost

My work is inspired by found objects – many of these are truly found, mostly on our beaches but sometimes in the woods around my home in Affpuddle. Others are bought objects found in vintage sales. In both cases, I collect items that speak to me in some way. I am drawn to the texture, marks, colour and form of the junked and the jettisoned. A lost spoon, a long disused industrial relic, a piece of ship’s metal – these are my starting points. I like to work with a variety of media, in 2D and 3D, utilising found wood, metal, rubber, cloth, plastic or anything else that appeals. Having found a piece that interests me, I rarely have an immediate idea as to how to use it, but one day inspiration strikes and I can see a way forward. Whilst I love wildlife and the countryside, it is the man made object that draws my eye artistically – when looking at an industrial piece, I wonder who last used it, when and where. When I find a piece of beach treasure I think about the process by which a pristine, utilitarian, commonplace man made item entered the sea and was returned to the land at some point, brought by tide and wind. On its return it became unique – altered, distressed, made more beautiful and rendered useless! What happens in between is guess work!!