Hedley Wiggan

Hi, welcome, I hope you're well and you enjoy this post.

I'm not sure what I did before Pinterest.. I love it, you can find so many artists and their work on there.

Hedley Wiggan is one of those artists. I first saw his work quite a while ago before I was doing this blog. I was watching James Corden's Late Late Show recently when One Direction were on there and they showcased a piece of his work so I decided to check it out again. Hedley is the micro sculptor who sculpted the Harry Styles pencil lead.  Below is a picture of Harry on the Late Late Show meeting his graphite self..

Pencil lead is not the only thing that Hedley sculpts nor is it the only art that he does. We'll have a look at a variety of his work and then meet him as he was kind enough to answer some questions for me.

We'll have a look at a few of the lead sculptures first though seeing as I've mentioned them. I find it incredible when people do things like this, I can just about sharpen a pencil let alone sculpt one! The patience that Hedley must have!

So the next five (technically 8) sculptures are: The Beatles (the John Lennon is particularly brilliant), Venus De Milo (white pencil), cupid, a mouse with a diamond flower and the Hulk! They are just incredible.

 

The detail in all of those pencil sculptures is just amazing.

As I mentioned it isn't just pencils that Hedley sculpts, he was commissioned by Heathrow Airport to sculpt some of the world's most famous landmarks out of lipstick which were then displayed at the airport.  The sculptures included: Burj Khalifa, Big Ben, Statue of Liberty, Eiffel Tower and Shanghai Tower.

In this video by Heathrow, Hedley is discussing the lipstick sculptures and beginning work on one of the intricate pieces of art.

Hedley comes from the north of England and is one of a very creative family, so it's hardly surprising he's so talented. His other talents include sculpting the tips of cocktail sticks, engraving glass and painting.  Here are a couple of his stunning glass engravings..

Aside from all of his work being brilliant my very favourite pieces are two paintings that he has done, one is on a circular saw and the other is on a normal handsaw.  I love upcycling, altering and mixed media in art so these two pieces are right up my street.

Hedley also paint canvases and even murals.  This is a beautiful mixed media piece on canvas.

Right, let's meet Hedley before I get carried away and show you every single piece of artwork he's ever done, I'll share his facebook and website link below so that you can go and explore.


Hi Hedley, tell us a little about you and what you do please.

My name is Hedley Wiggan. I live in Manchester in the UK aged 49. I love to paint things from my imagination, I also create  sculptures from graphite pencils.

What was your earliest creative memory?

My earliest memory, I entered a drawing competition at the age of 8 the prize was a box of chocolates, i entered purely to win the hand of a fair maiden, I was disqualified as the teacher believed I traced my entry, I suppose in its own way it was a compliment. 

Must be easier to see that as a compliment now but not so much when you were 8!  I hope the fair maiden wasn't put off!

Do you ever suffer from creative block and if so how do you deal with it?

I do sometimes have a creative block I tend to just go with it, I find going for a walk with nature as I love all wildlife and anything creepy crawly.

Who inspires you?

My inspirations: I love Dali, Monet and I love Renaissance also.

Do you have a favourite piece that you've created?

It's hard to choose a favourite but when I get a new idea I'm always excited.

What are your creative ambitions?

My creative ambitions for the future would be to inspire others.

How do you silence your inner critic?

I never silence the inner critic I feel it's a motivational thing.

What do you when you're not being creative?

When I'm not creating I love visiting friends and family, I also love watching insects in there own environment fascinates me.

If you were stranded on a desert island what three items would you want with you?

My craft art items would be a paint brush, knife and a big tube of paint. 

Where can we find your artwork?   

I do have a website for people just to see what sort of things I do its: 

hedleywiggan.co.uk 

Facebook 

Twitter 

Please take some time to check out Hedley's website and pages, there is a lot to see!

Thank you for answering my questions Hedley.  Here are just a couple more pieces of Hedley's work before I go.
The first is Mohammad Ali and the second is Spiderman - brilliant.

Thank you to you for reading my blogpost.  Have a great week.