James Doran-Webb British, Contemporary

James Doran-Webb was raised in Devon, amongst a family of artisans. His earliest experiences were of helping within the family antiques restoration business, where dismantling and repairing historic furniture demanded an intimate understanding of internal structure. From a young age, he developed a practical awareness of how objects mellow and endure over time, underpinned with how they have been created. Long before sculpture became his primary focus, the logic of how form is sustained, and how it eventually fails, had already become central to his thinking. Now based in Cebu in the Philippines, Doran-Webb has developed an internationally recognised sculptural language centred on animals, working almost exclusively with decades-dead reclaimed molave wood, responsibly sourced from private land along riverbeds and coastal environments. Molave, one of the most resilient hardwoods in the world, bears the marks, grooves and sculpted textures of more than half a century of exposure to sun, salt and sea. These weathered surfaces are not hidden, but actively create the form and expression found in his work. Every sculpture begins with a concealed stainless-steel armature, engineered specifically for balance and long-term stability, permitting extended wingspans, elevated group formations and weight-bearing limbs to project confidently into space. Around these frames, thousands of timber fragments are assembled incrementally, building anatomy through accumulation rather than modelling. Muscle, joint and mass are articulated through the alignment of grain and natural fracture, allowing structure to remain visible and legible throughout the work. Nothing is applied to disguise construction.