About Me

I am an artist imbued with a distinct sense of place and history. Growing up on the Cumbrian coast gave me an enduring love of the rich textures of the coastal landscape and its wildlife; as well as the heritage of the ports, towns and villages of the Solway Plain.
My career in nature conservation and community regeneration only helped reinforce these ideas, whilst also giving me the training and mentoring skills that I now bring to my courses and tuition.
As a stone-carver, I have been largely self-taught since first taking it up as a hobby in the early 1990s. I am very lucky that I can now pursue my interests and dedicate my time and energy to my art.
Now, as a seasoned stone carver with more than 30 years’ experience, I can still recall the vivid pleasure I felt on creating my first carving. This is one of the things that drives my desire to hand on the ancient skill and craft of stone carving to new enthusiasts through my workshops and courses.
I am primarily an instinctual abstract artist, creating naturalistic forms and 3D sculptures. As my carving style continues to evolve, I have grown more fascinated by the delicate patterns and intricate details found in the natural world. I recently began to experiment with relief carvings as a way of capturing these forms and textures, so strongly abstract and sculptural in their own right.
Although I work in many types of stone, I often find myself returning to St Bees red sandstone, the stone of my native soil. From this rock, many of West Cumbria’s towns and villages were built and it is among these places, with their deep historical resonances, that we continue to connect in stone.
Tony Crellin