Biography

sherwood’s most recent sculptures represent the further development of his ongoing dialogue with the associative sensations of form and surface. Forms are compressed, distorted, or squeezed, and made more intimate by subtle adjustments of scale. He does not imitate the body; however, the sensual aspect of the manipulated shape proposes physicality to the viewer even in the absence of figuration. Carved lines contour the surfaces to emphasize the form, create the illusion of expansiveness and provoke associations to patterning, layering and veiled imagery. We are invited to investigate the visual grasp of intuitive perception. The tension between shape and skin that characterizes Isherwood’s work is further reflected in the tensions surrounding his technique and material. His sculptures are the result of a unique process in which the ancient and the modern confront one another: marble, the oldest and most sensual sculptural material, is carved with the help of high-tech methods. This allows Isherwood to attain an uncompromised precision in his treatment of the incised surfaces, which play with and against the swelling, fleshy, soft and yet substantial character of his organic forms.