BELINDA SILLARS - From saddlery to sculpture
Self-taught, Belinda Sillars is a well respected animal sculptor both sides of the Atlantic. Her keen eye for detail and individual style reflect her personality - once met, never forgotten.

Born amid the beautiful countryside of Suffolk, Belinda was surrounded by animals and began riding as soon as she could sit up. Her flair for creativity soon became apparent when, as a child, she frequently drew and painted pictures of horses and dogs.

Her passion for racing was instilled when she later worked with horses in Calcutta and, seeking work that would involve her with equestrianism, she returned to England and qualified as a saddler and harness maker, setting up her own business. Such is the way of life, and with harness work being heavy, Belinda suffered a shoulder injury; it was at this point in her life she turned to sculpting.

Completely self-taught, Belinda was, and still is, a harsh critic of her work. Over the years, as her hands followed her eyes in recreating the detail she is now renowned for, Belinda learnt to cast in bronze and resin and to patinate her bronzes with colour.

Basing herself in Kent, her work in equine sculpting led to exhibitions at major horse shows during the 1990s, as well as presenting a solo exhibit in London. The movement and life portrayed in her work, coupled with the unusual patination became her hallmark. Her subject matter became more varied, depicting birds, tennis players, polo ponies, show horses, racing, eventers, dogs, coursing and hunting and, never one to be satisfied with the easy option, she created her own casting techniques.

Belinda's work encompasses competition trophies as well as private portrait work, some of her trophy work includes Chatsworth Horse Trials, Bramham Horse Trials, Hickstead Dressage and the World Series Racing Championships. Her clientele includes many leading figures in the equestrian world.

However, it was not all work and no play with this talented lady, racing was never far from her thoughts and in the late nineties, with her beloved mare Brambledown, she took part in point-to-points. Their racing record was quite remarkable and on one occasion Belinda managed to win one of her own trophies. Brambledown has been the inspiration for much of Belinda's work and was not left behind when her owner set off for America in 2002.

Brambledown was accompanied by Belinda's three Dalmations and Sprout, the Jack Russell terrier, on the journey from Kent to Virginia, where Belinda's work flourished. She travelled widely across the United States, both competing on Brambledown in several disciplines and enjoying the many foxhound packs to be found - from the cotton fields of Georgia to the mountains back in Virginia and the rolling grasslands of Kentucky. Her work is now available to American customers from the Berkley Gallery in Warrington, Virginia and the Crossgate Gallery in Lexington, Kentucky.

British fans of Belinda's work will benefit from her experience across the pond as her many ideas are now available in bronze on both sides of the Atlantic. In late 2005 she, with Brambledown and the dogs, return to these shores although her time will be split equally between England and America as Belinda continues to seek out new subjects in her restless pursuit of bringing her sculpted animals to life.