Michael Cooper, FRBS 

Large and small scale sculpture in marble, stone and bronze, Michael Cooper’s pieces are a study in a wide variety of animal, bird and the human figure. Born in Dublin, Michael studied at a Heatherly’s School of Art and then under Anthony Gray. It is the the nature of the material that lends itself to Cooper’s flowing harmonies of surface, and it is this that depicts the beauty of the natural world. His pieces are irresistibly tactile and the viewer is drawn to touch as much as view his pieces.

Michael has exhibited since 1974, in a wide variety of venues including London and Jersey Zoos, the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, the Royal Academy of Arts, Gloucester Cathedral Crucible exhibitions and Gallery Pangolin.  Most recently he was commissioned to carve a Dodo in Alabaster for Oliver Hoare’s exhibition in London, ‘Every Object Tells a Story’. Large scale commissions include a reclining figure in Travertine marble for Covent Garden, three bears in Belgian Fossil Marble for Bicester Village, a pair of apples and more recently, a giant tortoise in Kilkenny limestone which was also cast in bronze.

“Michael’s empathy for his subject allows his chisel deftly to reveal not only the inner calm and beauty of the stone but also the essence of the animal itself.This is not ‘Nature, red in tooth and claw’, nor sanitised sentimentality; Michael’s sculptures are dignified, self-assured, independent and respectful.

They have a deep and quiet energy perhaps imparted by the long hours of chipping which bring them forth from the stone. Michael Cooper’s work brings the third dimension vividly to life through the irresistible urge to feel and caress surface and form. With eyes closed, this abstract, almost musical pleasure is an essential part of the appreciation of his sculptures.” – Rungwe Kingdon, Pangolin Editions