Messums West is an impressive gallery site housed in a large and splendid 13th century tithe barn complex preserved on this site in Wiltshire UK, boasting additional galleries, courtyards, outdoor exhibition spaces and an excellent cafe/restaurant, and must surely be one of the most scenic galleries in England set in the beautiful rolling green countryside of this idyllic landscape. Messums West is situated at the end of a single track country road leading out from the picturesque village of Tisbury which is in the vicinity of other local gems, Stourhead in Stourton, and East Knoyle, Sir Christopher Wren’s birthplace, being among them.

This unspoilt green and stone environment is appropriately hosting a selection of works where each creative has used elements of the natural world as inspiration.

Laurence Edwards ‘Leaf Man’        Peter Logan’s ‘Tree of Life’

Zena Holloway’s ‘Sand Sculptures’         Jacob van de Beugel’s ‘Mutation’ 

Nicola Hicks ‘Dressed for the Woods’         

Laurence Edwards: Sculptures

Driving into the spacious car park, the site is surrounded by buttercup fields where sheep happily graze unperturbed as they share the field space with the imposing giant ‘Walking Men’ sculptures by Laurence Edwards, which seem uncannily alive as they stride across the field in transient light. Several other pieces by Edwards are on show including a life-sized ‘Leaf Man’ and a series of smaller models, cast into bronze from clay by the artist himself. Edwards, who won the Henry Moore Bursary for Bronze Casting, was trained in bronze casting at the Royal College of Art and worked under Antony Caro. These are formidable works of presence and skill and compliment the natural setting at Messums perfectly.

Peter Logan: Kinesis. 

The kinetic artist Peter Logan is exhibiting a selection of free-moving and motorised sculptures, maquettes and working drawings from his life’s work.  Logan’s taller balletic mechanised sculptures are arranged in the area outside the tithe barn, medium-sized and smaller pieces are displayed in the Long Gallery. The towering outdoor mobiles seem unexpectedly agile given their size and the often slim-line metalwork construction. In motion these works possess a surprising elegance of free movement and are so much more than a formula of practical engineering made from moving parts. These are cleverly crafted air-born balletic sequences providing a sophisticated sculptural experience in metal.  Alexander Calder’s works used similar finite balance techniques, but these are on a different scale entirely, the bulk twisting into unexpected positions like a complex windmill where pre-planned movements are at once both irregular and consistent.  To conceive and construct a work where full-scale ladders are tossed around in mid-air on a continuous loop takes a special kind of courage, and a touch of genius. The source of this inspired piece apparently came from the 12th century ladder of Divine Ascent icon in the monastery of St Catherine in Egypt. Logan has called this work ‘Tree of Heaven’ and it forms part of a series of works using this title on display in the Long Gallery.

 Logan was keen to recreate key pieces destroyed in a 1979 fire.  As an evolving talent, Logan found the principles of choreography an inspirational source of forward development, which captured his imagination. He attended the ‘Place’ dance studio whilst studying theatre and film at the Slade, following study at Oxford and Camberwell Schools of Art. Logan translated movement and sequence routines into the creation of motorised maquettes using tubing components and random materials, thus forming the primary vision of Peter’s sculptural practice. It could be said that these works offer a refreshing comparison to the mechanised monotonous ‘windmills’ of ‘green energy’ fame strewn across field and coastline today. How surreal it would be to transform these giants into Peter Logan’s works and watch them move in balletic performance against the skyline! Square Dance is a large mechanised sculpture in the permanent Tate Collection which is accompanied by electronic sound sequences created by Brian Hodgson.

Works by Logan exhibited in the Long gallery are for sale, the ‘In search of Nicholson Blue-Rondo series’, works on paper with an aluminium twist, among other collectable pieces.  

Videos of Peter Logan’s moving works may be viewed online at ‘Messums Productions’ on YouTube.

Jacob van de Beugel: Mutation Series

Jacob van de Beugel, a UK born Dutch artist, is a contemporary ceramicist and sculptor. His work is much sought after and can be seen in prestigious locations, including Chatsworth House and the Huis ten Bosch Palace in The Hague. Three of his works are displayed in the outdoor area immediately in front of the tithe barn. These original pieces are from Jacob’s ‘Mutation’ series, each measuring three metres wide. Much of the artist’s work takes its form from an inspirational idea relating to coding sequences in cells using methodical and subtle pattern sources with gradual colour variations. The surface inserts and textures are planned and assembled in a carefully ordered manner creating effective and beautiful effects. These bas-relief works are formed in weatherproof clay and self-healing concrete, with suitability for hanging on a flat wall. Many of Jacob’s installation works are created directly onto wall surface areas and are permanent.

Zena Holloway: Sculpture in the Sands

An innovator and underwater photographer, Zena Holloway is the founder of ‘Rootful’. Several large atmospheric interwoven sculptures are displayed in the tithe barn with other pieces from her ‘Sustainable Wearables Collection’. The inspiration for these works emerged from observing patterns in root formations during her underwater photographic sessions. The process of nurturing mass root growth as textile then began in her studio, using original madder root source material. ‘Sculpture in the Sands’ is a collection of large works emerging from this creative process using organic materials including beeswax and natural dyes, are bio-degradable, specifically designed to decay naturally, disappearing back into the Earth. Her empathy for land and sea environments form the basis for all works undertaken in her practice. A bio-degradable wedding dress made by the artist, was integrated into the 2024 Chelsea Flower Show. Zena’s imposing atmospheric pieces can be viewed in the tithe barn and are a testament to this original artist’s skill in conception and construction.

 ‘Sculpture in the Sands’ is at Messums West until 14th June before being transferred to Lowestoft Beach Light Festival for the 2ist -22nd June, where a collaborative sound performance will echo sounds from the oceans, to accompany Holloway’s stunning sculptures.

Nicola Hicks: Dressed for the Woods

This talented sculptor, hailing from the Chelsea and Royal Colleges of Art, is showing two large pieces from her ‘Dressed for the Woods’ exhibition. These life-sized decorated vase-shaped bases are each topped with a creature fashioned by Nicola in her trademark technique using straw, clay and sometimes plaster. All Nicola’s sculptures demand a second look and these are no exception. Prepare to be absorbed into the world of the weird and wonderful! 

 Peter Logan: Kinesis runs until 21st July 2025

A Review by Deanna de Roche 2025

• Messums West
• Place Farm, Court Street, Tisbury. SP3 6LW
• Email: west@messums.org
• Telephone Thurs-Mon 44(0)1747 445042