sara holmes
public art – Selected works
Sara has completed several works of public art. Some pieces have been commissioned as part of wider community projects others such as the Kingfishers at The National Trust’s Hatchlands Estate and ‘Surrey Hills’ have been commissioned or purchased to celebrate specific spaces or events.
The Last Survivors, 2024
Stainless steel & willow
The National Trust, Runnymede
Sara was commissioned by the National Trust to design an installation around the themes of ‘Land & Freedom’.
“This inspired me to think about the people whose livelihood was and is tied to the land. Throughout history, country people like me have depended on the land to sustain our occupations and ways of life. Today, as in the past, we are being forced by lack of work to move to the cities and are losing our connection to nature and the land.”
In her research Sara came across a story, ‘The Gleaner’ by H.E. Bates which describes a day in the life of an elderly woman who ‘gleans’ – who picks up the remains of the harvest left in the fields. In Bates’s story the woman is alone, but in past centuries she was accompanied by the whole village. Her solitary portrayal in Bates’s story represents the end of a bucolic idyll. Bates refers to gleaners like her as ‘the last survivors of an ancient race’.
“Twentieth century innovations freed people from hard work, but they also lead to the end of a rural way of life. I hope that people are intrigued and wonder, as I do, what it meant when the gleaners’ bell stopped ringing?”
The sculptures are attracting a lot of attention. As people see them from the road they are fascinated and drawn in to explore them further.
“The feedback has been amazing. I am thrilled that everyone who spoke to me, as I was making them a seems to love them.. One gentleman said he felt ‘a spiritual happiness’ when he looked at them. A comment like that is all an artist wants to hear”.
Impressive artworks by other distinguished artists can also be seen around the site, they include ‘The Jurors’ by Hew Locke OBE RA, and ‘Writ in Water’ by Turner prize winner Mark Wallinger
Scyther, 2021
Mild steel, willow & hazel
The National Trust – Runnymede
Sara was commissioned by the National Trust to create a sculpture to tell a story about the history of the people and the land at Runnymede. In the meadows at Runnymede hay has been made for centuries. ‘Scyther’ formed the centrepiece of a wider project in which Sara was artist in residence, running workshops over several days with local community groups. The reult was a 16 piece intallation named ‘Haymaking’
Kingfishers, 2019
Mild steel & willow
The National Trust, Hatchlands Park
To celebrate the regeneration project of Sheepwash Pond at Hatchlands Park Estate the National Trust commissioned Sara to create fitting sculpture. Since an important part of the regeneration was a manmade nesting site for Kingfishers, Sara was inspired to create a pair of Kingfishers in flight, to be placed in the pond.
Surrey Hills, 2012
Mild steel & willow
Woking Borough Council, Wolsey Centre
Surrey Hills depicts three willow cyclists on metal hills. The sculpture was first shown at The Legacy of Sport exhibition at Guildford Cathedral and will now be a permanent addition to the Wolsey Place Shopping Centre, Woking, Surrey .
The piece is inspired by a project the Sara led during the London 2012 celebration of the Games, Woking’s Willow Cyclists
The Mayor of Woking, Cllr Tony Branagan, said: “Our Borough was lucky enough to play its part in the greatest show on earth, the London 2012 Olympics… The inspirational sculpture, created by local artist Sara Holmes, is a fitting legacy to that very special summer of sport, culture and community spirit that we all enjoyed and will never forget.
Sara said: “Woking has celebrated cycling with some wonderful initiatives over the last few years. I hope this sculpture serves as a legacy for this and reminds the young people I worked with of their own, personal connection to the London 2012 Games.”
