The tranquil trickle of success C
By Cathy Upton
ropredy resident Simon Allison and his team have a reputation for quality casting.
The Four Shires were lucky enough to meet Simon and chat about his work at his foundry near the village recently. New Zealand born Simon came over to England in 1984 whilst
travelling; only intending to stay a few months. He stopped en-route to India so that he could make a bit of money before continuing on his travels. During this time he secured a job as a cellar man, although he had never tasted English ale before! He lived above the pub (The Pineapple in Lambeth), free of charge, where he continued to produce sculptures in his spare time. Before he could continue on to India however, he met a fellow Kiwi, who taught a five-day bronze-casting course. Simon attended one of these and was excited by the process. Previously, having only sculpted in plaster of Paris and wax, Simon now found a material that was far more durable. Simon went on to set up a small studio in Brixton. Within weeks people were coming to him requesting castings. In a few short years, what had started as a tiny casting facility had grown into a large business housing 16 employees! It was during this time that he met his future wife Jane and the move to The Four Shires occurred. Jane already owned a small cottage on the plot of land where the foundry and studio stands today. The recession of the early 90s hit and business in London declined and Simon took the decision, in 1993, to
The casting process
close it down permanently. Instead he set up a small foundry in the garage attached to the cottage at Cropredy. He had every intention of keeping it small, doing minimal ‘outside’ casting and keeping it a very much one-person affair. Before long however, Simon and Jane purchased four acres of extra pasture and proceeded to build the studio and foundry on site. It is now 18 years on and the studio and foundry employs ten local people! Simon very much believes that
the Four Shires is a special part of the country, particularly for the creative industry. It is a stone’s throw away from London, other big cities and cultural towns such as Stratford Upon Avon, all of which provide great balance and inspiration. Simon commented: ‘The Four Shires is a complete contrast to my home country, New Zealand. The countryside here is manicured and very beautiful compared to the organic wilderness of New Zealand; everywhere you look in New Zealand mountains tower through the landscape to greet you. Both countries are beautiful in very different ways’. Fountains were never the driving
force behind the creation of the foundry; these came around more by accident. At a party, Simon met garden designer Rupert Golby. Rupert
was about to produce a show garden at the Chelsea Flower Show. ‘It was a beautiful concept; alternate rows planted with flowers and vegetables and a brick edged pond forming the centre.’ Rupert felt that the pond was missing a focal point to which Simon came up with the solution – a bronze cast fountain using the form of the Brussels sprout plant! ‘The Brussel Sprout plant is a lot of fun. It is a very humorous and quirky plant.’ The fountain ended up being a three-stem
• The selected leaf is laid on a bed of clay and a mould of silicon rubber is created.
• Wax is meticulously painted into the details of the mould.
6 March 2011
• Over the next five days the wax is covered with layers of ceramic shell to make a strong white investment.
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