Royal British Legion Weston Super Mare 2007

I have designed several war memorials in the past but my designs were found to be too emotional,  War memorials that are also art enter this emotional arena. For Instance  the sculptor Sergeant Jagger did this very cleverly in the subtext of the brooding sentry at Paddington station left. It is a very difficult  and sensitive balance to get right that is why most memorials that are made are neutered architecture designs avoiding  real feelings and experience. One of my favourite memorials is the one in the centre of Derby , left, designed by Charles Clayton Thompson and  made by A. G. Walker which speaks of loss and sacrifice not only of the individual service men but of their families and children and fearlessly expresses emotion.

It was with great pleasure  that I was asked to make this memorial The hands were suggested to me by  Major Rikki Peters and his committee had already decided to enter the territory of emotion but in a simple straight forward way that says we care about our service men and women as individual people and we ask all of you to care as well. This memorial is not a cipher it is a simple statement of love in action practiced at this respite home.