Nick Baker the artist and Chairman of Surrey Sculpture Society, talks to us about how he got to that position and what Surrey Sculpture society is all about.
The Chair – An unexpected seat.
There I was, bumbling along in the construction industry – plumbing mainly but with a foray into some carpentry or tiling when the script demanded it. It was a Tuesday if I remember correctly, when I had an epiphany, “This is a bit crap and I’d like a change.”
What to do?
I have always had a secret urge to weld. Just the thought that you can use magic glue to join metal of any shape or size and “bingo!” you’ve got a “thing”. It may be useful, beautiful, or both but there it is – looks at it! I welded that!! How exciting.
Fast forward a year or four and I’m now making furniture, gates, and water features. All good fun but a spark had been ignited and now I wanted to “play”. I joined Surrey Sculpture Society and exhibited a rudimentary dragonfly and a few flowers I’d built, at RHS Wisley. All of a sudden, I had sold two flowers. If I’d been fence-sitting before, now I was leaping over it to see what’s on the other side.
My father often advised me to say “Yes” rather than “No” whenever an opportunity arises. You’ll never know unless you have a bash. Through a convoluted series of events; five years after learning to weld, I have ended up being Chair of the Society. How bonkers is that?
Surrey Sculpture Society is a voluntary organisation that stages exhibitions, social events, and demonstrations of techniques – for all who have an interest in such things. Both emerging and established artists have an easy path to displaying their genius to the public.
To say that I have a touch of imposter syndrome is an understatement to rival a comment like “Space is quite big.” There’s no ego or false modesty here, I really am a newbie to this world. I was, truly, advised to ditch Art at GCSE and did German instead – Wahnsinn, nicht wahr!
So here I am, the titular leader of this merry band. A whole new world full of intelligent, funny, and eclectic nutters. To be clear, I didn’t have to start from scratch, the Society is over 25 years old and there are established, fruitful practices however, all things evolve.
What to do?
Everything and Nothing… all at once.
There’s no right or wrong, just a sense of what is productive and exciting. Some of the minutiae can be a tad mundane but I am part of a dedicated team and we support each other when “real-life” interrupts the sculpture bubble.
We have the opportunity to shape and steer the future of the Society and to quote a hackneyed phrase – “The World is our Oyster”.
Can anyone join SSS?
If you have a pulse then Yes, exhibiting or not.. full membership is only £40 a year other options are cheaper
How do you encourage diversity?
By not excluding anyone from getting involved - not to be sarcastic but as we're not a govt body or a company we don't have an actual policy - we don't need to address sexism, racism, homophobia etc as we don't judge by any of those criteria. We have members of all shapes and sizes from all over the world. We also keep membership and exhibition costs to an absolute minimum so that we don't exclude anyone financially - after that, we welcome all who are keen.
How do you select work for each show?
The Manager and Designer (different for each show) will make a selection from the applications. Often with collaboration with the venue management. Our only real guideline is that it's NOT personal taste but a selection as varied as the visitors who'll see them.
What are the criteria you look for?
Very hard to condense this...we have a rule that you can't show the same piece at the same venue for five years. We look for good quality work - ie. well made within its medium/style. We are conscious of the setting - ie how would a piece compliment the garden it'll be shown in (Too big/small, colours of surrounding bushes, etc). We actively encourage new members by ensuring they get at least one piece in a show. We are not seeking to provoke so gratuitous political comment, nudity, or "offensive" words/gestures are NOT banned but tend to be less favoured. For the record we don't get a lot that is "rejectable" ...We actively seek to offer a range of mediums, styles, price points, sizes etc The more varied the better for both artists and customers.
What is the biggest challenge for the SSS ?
Getting volunteers. We have venues coming out of our ears, and plenty of artists want to exhibit but getting members to put in the extra effort is a perennial challenge. There are many roles that need filling with a range of skillsets from catering to social media to organising stewarding rotas.....something for everyone except only a few will step forward.
What are their proudest moments?
Hmmm, we are most keen on supporting colleges, new artists, and local art initiatives and we strive to do as much as possible. There are many artists who started with us and went on to be very successful/famous - just don't ask me who off the top of my head.