Benjamin Fletcher

Wood Turning

About

Benjamin Fletcher is a mixed media artist whose practice has always drawn inspiration from, and usually comprises, discarded materials.

His work explores themes that lend themselves to coastal habitation, liminal spaces, decay, deception, rebirth and the perils of modern living.
The outcomes of this exploration used to take the form of mixed media assemblages but he is currently focussing on the creation of vessels, functional and sculptural forms using recycled, gifted, or otherwise unwanted woods. Though they may differ aesthetically, the motive remains unchanged; to collect, arrange and reform found objects, albeit now using singular material - wood.

Process

He collects and wood from trees that are felled or fallen, their history recorded not only in the growth rings but also in the rot and spalting, the checks and cracks, grain and chatoyance, the rust and patina. Rather than removing or hiding them, Benjamin exposes these marks, revealing the imperfections as the woods’ contribution to the collaborative process of sculpture.

He has a fondness for local trees, weeds and modest flora, and prefers making objects that are less grand in figure and in size; they fit in the hand and they are meant to be held. The warmth and tactility of wood invites a more intimate form of study, and vessels are objects that beg further investigation than mere observation.

    Awards

    • Winner of Turners’ Bursary 2026

    Maker stories