Joseph Hillier (born 24 April 1974 in
Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
) is a British sculptor. His best known works include the ''
Messenger
''MESSENGER'' was a NASA robotic space probe that orbited the planet Mercury between 2011 and 2015, studying Mercury's chemical composition, geology, and magnetic field. The name is a backronym for "Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geoche ...
'', a
public sculpture
Public art is art in any media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and physically access ...
in
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
, Devon.
Early life and education
Hillier was born in Cornwall in 1974.
He studied at
Falmouth College of Art Falmouth may refer to:
Places Antigua
*Falmouth, Antigua and Barbuda
*Falmouth Harbour, Antigua
Australia
*Falmouth, Tasmania, a locality in North-east Tasmania
Canada
*Falmouth, Nova Scotia, a community in Hants County
* Upper Falmouth, Nova ...
, then held a research post at
Newcastle University
Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a UK public university, public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is ...
.
In 2000, he won ''Year of the Artist Award'', from the
Arts Council England
Arts Council England is an arm's length non-departmental public body of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is also a registered charity. It was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three s ...
.
In 2001,
Tulane University
Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...
awarded Hillier a scholarship, leading to completion of a Master of Fine Arts in
, as well as teaching role.
In 2004, he was elected associate member of the
Royal British Society of Sculptors,
later to become a Fellow.
Career
His first works ''Being Human'', consisting of five large art pieces, were sold to a single collection, and shipped back to the UK.
This funded his first art studio in London, where he produced ''Generation'', enabling his debut solo exhibition at APT Gallery in 2005.
In 2013, his work was chosen to be a finalist in the national sculpture prize, at Broomhill, and at the
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...
summer exhibition.
In 2017, his most notable work
''Messenger'', was commissioned, and erected two years later in
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
, Devon, March 2019.
See also
*
Lost-wax casting
Lost-wax casting (also called "investment casting", "precision casting", or ''cire perdue'' which has been adopted into English from the French, ) is the process by which a duplicate metal sculpture (often silver, gold, brass, or bronze) is ...
References
External links
*
Profile on The Sculpture ParkWhy the artist behind the UK's biggest bronze sculpture chose a woman as the subject
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hillier, Joseph
English sculptors
English male sculptors
21st-century British sculptors
21st-century male artists
Alumni of Falmouth University
Alumni of Newcastle University
English contemporary artists
1974 births
Living people