Born in 1973 in the city of London, Marco Chiandetti completed his studies at the Chelsea college of art in 2007, going on to take up a residency there in 2010. He’s then moved on to other residencies and has exhibited his work from London, England to Melbourne Australia. Of recent he has been working out of an iron shack in Australia as well as London.

He works with a wide array of media, but has focussed his attention on sculpture and performance, specifically the performative aspects of sculpting clay. Although his final works can be made of materials like bronze or concrete, clay is his go-to medium. This is where Marco has inspired my work, I share his fascination with clay and its links to humanity and the earth. This quote perfectly demonstrates his understanding for the meaningfulness of clay, and reflects my feeling towards the medium.

“It’s the ground we walk on, and it takes thousands of years to make. We have used it since the dawn of time.”

Interested by clays capacity to capture actions such as kneading, punching, grasping, and the way it replicates the textures of skin, or other details of the human body means it can become an extension of an action or reaction, and is quickly relatable. Marco Chiandetti’s sculptures depicting gestures, with the indents of fingers and hands, is to me a memory of that action. Inanimate objects can hold memories in their impressions, folds, creases and overall form.  

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