My artwork is a view of social, politcal, and cultural issues conveyed in a quirky and humorous way.
In my work I deconstruct my views and then make a critical comment using fairy-tales, wordplay, nursery rhymes, illustration and icons, in the hope that I create a positive resonance in whoever engages in the work. I try to use familiar visual images and arrange them into conceptually layered pieces.
I have worked in ceramics and wood, but prefer to work in bronze. I like the permanence and durability of it. I am keenly aware of its durability in time, and try to use a universal subject matter rather than a topical one which will date quickly.
I don’t have a specific style that I use but rather use a style that is suitable to the subject matter at hand. My sculptures are all completely different, but when assembled as a body of work, I would like to believe that they complement each other.
Carol Cauldwell Biography
Carol Cauldwell was born in Germiston, South Africa and grew up in the beautiful surroundings of the Magaliesburg mountains north of Johannesburg.
Inspired by her father’s love of everything creative, she joined the Johannesburg school of Art, Ballet, Drama and Music. She acquired a diploma in ceramics from the Technicon of the Witwatersrand where she excelled in Sculpture. After her studies, she started a Pottery Studio which was so successful that it produced up to 4000 hand painted units per day.
In 2000 Carol closed her pottery factory which could no longer compete with the rise of Chinese imports. Desperately disappointed, Carol said that she would never work in clay again and took on painting Greek Orthodox icons in the Byzantine style, painted a few churches and taught herself woodturning. However, for years she yearned for the flexibility that she found in clay.
A random visit to a top gallery in 2011 so overwhelmed Carol that it finally brought the fulfilment of a lifelong dream. “I remember gasping so loud in sheer shock at the beauty of the sculptures on exhibition that I immediately ran downstairs and asked somebody for the name of a foundry to use and went straight out and bought some clay and started my journey. When I opened that first bag of clay I burst into tears. I had missed it so much and I haven’t looked back.”
She started sculpting in wax and bronze casting and has once again found enormous joy in this creative process.
