Elisabeth Frink: A view from within

Sculptor/Artist: Elisabeth Frink. Review by Marigold Bentley

Elisabeth Frink (1930-1993) produced startling sculptures and artworks that continue to intrigue today. But what motivated her? How did she come to develop her art, and what was she trying to portray?

War, violence and the spirit within, which transcends the worst aspects of humanity, are clearly expressed through Frink’s imagery. Like many of her contemporaries, she grew up deeply affected by world war two, particularly the impact it had on her father as a serving soldier, and on the area where she grew up – alongside wartime airfields in Suffolk. Despite being placed in school in Exmouth for safety, that area, too, was bombed.

Frink’s father, Ralph, having been one of the last people evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940, was based in Bovington Camp for a time. The Frinks stayed in the village of Kingston on Purbeck to be near him. The beauty of the area – cliffs, inlets, and the views of Corfe Castle – had a lasting effect on Elisabeth. Meanwhile a friend’s son, Roddy, was a young conscientious objector, and he influenced Elisabeth in a different way. Roddy was an artist, and encouraged the young Lis to create big bold drawings, and to paint. He was sensitive and thoughtful: historical accounts refer to the contrast she would have felt between her father, constantly armed and on the watch for the feared military invasion, and Roddy’s gentle conversations about art and expression. This was a completely different set of ideas about what was important.

Frink returned to Dorset in 1977, by which time she was a successful and well-known artist. She moved with her third husband to Woolland near Blandford Forum, where she set up a sculpture garden. She continued to work there, and to entertain her many friends, until her death in 1993.

The residents of Dorchester in Dorset are particularly blessed because, in the 1980s, the county council commissioned Frink to create an artwork marking the area along the former Roman walls where executions used to take place. Consequently we have the Dorset Martyrs Memorial, installed in 1986, with three larger-than-life figures marking the Catholics who were executed there. They stand, dignified and unafraid, despite the horrors to come, representing so many who suffered and died.

Frink is also known for her sculptures of animals, particularly dogs and horses. In all her work she tries to represent the spirit of the animal or person. It is that spiritual expression which evokes such powerful emotion in the viewer. You get a sense of personality and emotion.

Frink’s work isn’t to everybody’s taste but, for me, standing in the sightline of her intense Seated Man, or alongside her tormented Walking Madonna, is always profoundly moving, and I am grateful for her art.

Dorchester Meeting would love to welcome Friends visiting the exhibition. It runs at the Dorset County Museum until 21 April.

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