Oliver Spendley on the work

Endless Orbit of Elm brings together native Scottish stone and timber in a totemic form that feels both grounded in the landscape and slightly otherworldly. At its centre is a piece of Lewisian Gneiss, collected from a remote cove in the north-west Highlands and dating back around three billion years.

A hand-carved elm disc is carefully scribed to sit halo-like around the stone, while the elm plinth is finished with hand-inlaid butterfly joints. The relationship between stone and timber is intentionally seamless, reflecting the artist’s interest in the connection between natural elements, material and making.

Created slowly with gouge and mallet, the piece speaks to time, craft and the enduring force of the landscape.r.