When I was first asked if we made garden furniture, I did pause for thought. Had the enquiry not come from an established client who knew me and knew how we worked I might have said, no, not usually. But this was different, this was a commission for a piece of useful sculpture.
My client wanted an eyeful of furniture that would sit at the end of an avenue of recently planted cherry trees in a half circle of grass. The site would be visible from the main reception room of the house and from above from the master bedroom. The view was down that avenue of cherry trees to a well prepared focal point for their garden.
So I toddled off and did the drawings. I usually prepare two sets of designs based upon the idea that I like to give choice, also it makes me work harder and the second idea is always harder to come up with. Often the first idea will be best but sometimes like this time I really have to dig and scrabble around and then when it comes it is very different and new and a bit edgy. Because they knew me quite well by now they were getting brave, my first idea would have done the job nicely but this was a bit different, and they chose it. Bless them. We all need brave and daring patrons.
