Nothing is finite.
Everything can be transformed. Reinvented. In Peter Gilbert’s world, discarded or found everyday objects, be they Man made or Nature formed, offer endless possibilities and become the building blocks for his art.
Art Reborn
Rusted iron, sun bleached driftwood and antique carved woods are the materials of choice.
Weathered by the passage of time, these ingredients have already been “pre-sculpted” by Nature or Man and are upcycled to provide a fascinating palette of forms, textures and tones.
The approach is usually whimsical. Disused iron cooking pots are turned upside down, fused with other found objects and transformed into warrior helmets. Similarly obsolete pickaxes and coat hangers metamorphose into bird forms and bright pink discarded inner soles mutate to become irreverent tongues.
Thus found, abandoned objects are reborn and gain a new lease of life.
As an Anglo Dane born in Portugal, Peter Gilbert studied in the UK where he gained his BA Honours in Graphic Design at Norwich School of Art and Masters in International Journalism at City University.
Working mainly with metal in three dimensional form, but also with driftwood, carved woods and beachstones, his art is focused on upcycling found or discarded objects.
The result is a diverse range of conceptual, functional and Nature inspired artworks. These provide a testament to how the seemingly old or no longer useful can be revived and reinvented.
Today he lives by the coast, near Sintra, dividing his time between sculpture and copywriting.
Le Creuset Crab 2023
(21x74x40cm) Cast Iron pot, perforated steel & tubes, silicone gun nozzles
Mummy Long Legs 2021
(90x150x110cm) Painted cooking pots, rugby ball & steel rods
Mallet Flamingo 2023
(164x74x16cm) Painted wooden mallet, flexible sink tube, rake, beachstone
Spider Stool 2021
(55x82x53cm) Painted bicycle seat, steel tubes
Grate of Thrones 2023
(160x44x42cm) Painted iron grate, metal rods, sink drain strainer, corks
Patchwork Turtle 2019
(50x130x98cm) Painted iron firebowl, coal clothes iron, aluminium tubing, cogs
Wirey Fox 2023
(47x46x10cm) Painted bike seat wire & steel mesh
Scarab 2023
(125x70x25cm) Painted steel wire mesh and toothbrushes
Gecco Groove 2022
(170x150x12cm) Painted iron grill & carpenter's saw
Fantail 2021
(60x26x10cm) Painted chicken wire metal rake iron & stone
Netfish 2023
(142x70x8cm) Painted chicken wire fibrepaste & cogs
Anyone Seen Adam? 2022
(310x62x48) Painted iron tube & perforated metal mesh
Sting 2022
(115x77x100cm) Painted metal wood & pliers
Tatu Tattoo 2022
(128x55x18cm) Painted stainless steel & gardening forks
Cuckoo Cage 2022
(40x36x30cm) Painted bird cage rail hooks & feathers
Wire Cockrel 2021
(70x46x14cm) Chicken wire metal & stone
Iron Gull 2015
(43x44x9cm) Painted pickaxe & hammer
Proud Peacock 2021
(95x30x44cm) Painted rake iron and stone
Warrior Head 2013
(58x21x21cm) Painted iron cooking pot
FlyMe 2022
(52x52x35) Painted steel mesh rods & cogs
Arachnid Aureus 2018
(80x80x15cm) Painted bicycle seat & steel rods
Hooked! 2020
(121x96x6cm) Painted driftwood iron & brass
FloatFish 2022
(67x32x74cm) Painted Metal Buoy & Rake
Hippo 2020
(12x50x9cm) Painted steel birch wood block & branch
Impala 2019
(104x80x10cm) Painted collated tree roots
Cork Croc on a Rock 2019
(31x76x6cm) Painted cork oak branch & steel
Buffalo Bill 2020
(125x45x20cm) Painted driftwood & carved beach stone
Caterpillar 2020
(300x66x15cm) Painted steel tube & iron rods
Poppy Power 2019
(48x14x5cm) Painted wire/Mesh & glass bottle
Kettlephant 2019
(36x22x20cm) Iron kettle & painted steel
Twisted Tail Tomcat 2020
(142x42x8cm) Painted wood & iron
Fossil Fish 2019
(75x88x8cm) Painted plywood driftwood & iron
Cavalino Rampante 2020
(63x40x9cm) Painted iron aluminium & wood
Hoe Cat 2006
(60x30x10cm) Painted hoe & hinges
Rust Fish 2016
(81x26x3cm) Driftwood wire mesh & rusted sheet iron
Toro Rococo 2015
(40x89x18cm) Painted carved woods
Champagne Bouquet 2016
(54x29x29cm) Glass bottle corks & rods
Mosquito 2017
(120x60x20cm) Driftwood carved woods wire mesh & iron
Swing Monkey 2018
(125x81x12cm) Whitewashed driftwood & iron
Cat Rabbit 2009
(45x21x15cm) Painted hoe & iron
Steel Sunflowers 2023
(67x56x11cm) Painted steel cutting discs, cogs and hardwood
Birds on a Wire 2018
(38x14x10cm) Painted secateurs
Bullseye XL 2018
(95x95x50cm) Painted wood & iron
Bullseye 2013
(58x58x42cm) Oxidised painted oil drum
Pipe Dream Totem 2016
(288x40x28cm) Driftwood wood & iron
Locust 2019
(246x64x18cm) Driftwood, carved woods & iron
Mr Dapper 2016
(35x43x15cm) Painted wooden table & bicycle cogs
Bikeseat Bar Stools 2017
Bicycle seats & satelite dish mounts
Drift Bar Stools 2017
(110x31x30cm) Driftwood & steel
Babar Table 2016
(53x63x45cm) Watering can, tray & drift
Cog Table 2019
(112x60x60cm) Painted wood & steel
Root Reflection II 2019
(60x76x15cm) Painted wood & roots
Candlestick 2013
(54x20x20cm) carved woods, cogs & cutting disc
Candlesticks 2017
(44x13x13cm) Carved woods, cogs & drain
Drift Director 2018
(115x64x66cm) Driftwood, buoys & iron
Candlestick 2013
(53x20x20cm) Carved woods, cutting disc & cogs
Five Cog Chair 2018
(105x55x48cm) Driftwood, buoy & iron
Round Drift Mirror 2018
(108x88x8cm) Mirror, driftwood & iron
Golden Buoy Mirror 2017
(86x51x10cm) Mirror, driftwood, buoy & iron
Tripod Throne 2018
(143x63x55cm) Whitewashed driftwood & buoy
Cage Man 2020
(42x47.5x27.5cm) Painted bird cage & action man
#ThisisAmerica 2019
(115x76x2.5cm) Painted wood & steel
Drums of War 2022
(58x58x40cm) Painted oil drum, wood & metal
Déjà Vu 2022
(68x63x4.5cm) Painted compressed card on roofing board