Peter Close has been working as a leading sculptor for more than twenty years. Initially working on animal pieces, his outstanding works in this field rapidly brought his name to the fore, and commissions from Greenpeace and the internationally respected Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society swiftly followed. Working from his studio in the west of England, in 1994 his life size steel sculpture 'Integral' was selected for the prestigious Royal West of England Academy Exhibition.
"When making a portrait I think it is so important to capture the essence of their personality as well as a good physical likeness and I try and acquire as many books and references as I can on a subject before starting work. When I was creating Churchill for example I listened to a box set of his wartime speeches, played in the background as I worked. These contain some of the greatest pieces of oratory ever used in the English language, and gave me a deep insight into not only his utter determination not to surrender to Nazi aggression, and a great sadness at leading the country into another war so soon after the bloodbath of the First World War, but also to the brilliant use of humour. I have a cast of General Doolittle here in front of me now and by turning it to reflect the light in different ways you can see these different emotions all displayed."
