Artist profile
David Nash

Triangle, Circle, Square (2020)
charred Oak on charred Tulip shelf
86 x 70 x 26.5 cm (ref:Dn3060 03)

Two Holed Wall Cedars (2019)
Cedar, part charred
i/ 225 x 81 x 40 cm
ii/ 225 x 81 x 37 cm (ref:Dn3010)

Rain at Night and Mountain (2014)
Sycamore and pastel on paper
121 x 40 x 41 cm and 153 x 112 cm (ref:DN2372 and DN2763)

Beech, Ash, Oak (2016)
Triptych, pastel on paper in 3 parts. Beech framed in beech. Ash framed in ash. Oak framed in oak.
111.5 x 77 x 4.5 cm each (ref:DN2939)

Three Redwood Columns: Deepcut (2010)
Redwood
Three parts: 303 x 28 x 26 cm, 303 x 38 x 30 cm, 303 x 36 x 26 cm (ref:DN2214)
David Nash works primarily with wood that has fallen naturally or has been felled due to age, disease or safety. He also makes planted works; living, growing sculptures; long term projects that span decades; trees, brambles, copses are sculpted and manipultaed over tens of years to form domes, grids of saplings and walls of living matter.
Out of the felled trees emerge eggs, columns and pyramids. Domes are formed from elements of the tree, Cork Oak bark is stacked to make towering spires and squat 9m circles. Oak branches are burnt and stuck into the ground end on to form low convex structures. He burns and chars the wood to form deep black, velvety surfaces. Burnt edges highlight geometric shapes cut into columns, hexagonal shapes are carved into oak eggs.
Biography
- 1945
- Born in Esher, Surrey, UK
- 1963–65
- Studied Kingston College of Art
- 1967
- Moved to Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales, where he lives and works
- 1969–70
- Postgraduate Study, Chelsea School of Art
- 1999
- Elected Royal Academician Appointed Research Fellow, University of Northumbria, Newcastle Awarded Honorary Doctorate in Art & Design, Kingston University
- 2004
- Awarded OBE for services to the arts
Selected exhibitions
- 2019– 20
- 'David Nash: 200 Seasons', National Museum Cardiff, Wales and Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne
- 2018
- 'Wood, Metal, Pigment', Annely Juda Fine Art, London
- 2018
- 'Nature to Nature', Fondation Fernet-Branca, St Louis, France
- 2017
- 'Tree Seasons', Plas Glyn-y-Weddw, Gwynedd, North Wales
- 2016
- 'Columns, Peaks and Torsos', Galerie Lelong, Paris
- 2015–16
- 'Three Black Humps', 2015, Oak, charred, in three parts, at Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron
- 2015–16
- 'King & Queen I', 2011, Bronze, Keepers House The Royal Academy
- 2014–15
- 'David Nash Stencil Prints', Abbot's Room, Kloster Schoenthal, Switzwerland
- 2014
- 'David Nash', Kukje Gallery, Seoul
- 2014
- 'David Nash Prints and Multiples', Galerie Lelong, Paris
- 2013
- Installations by David Nash, Historic Grounds, Domaine de Chaumont-sur-Loire
- 2012–13
- 'David Nash – A Natural Gallery', Kew Gardens, Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, Surrey
- 2012
- 'Lines and Smudges', Annely Juda Fine Art, London
- 2010–11
- David Nash at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Wakefield
- 2010
- 'David Nash – Recent Sculptures and Colour Works', Annely Juda Fine Art, London
- 2009
- 'David Nash – Monumental Sculpture', Kunsthalle Mannheim