Lee AnchorSculpture

Process

From a block of clay

How a single figurative portrait comes into being — slowly, by hand, over many stages.

A grid of thirty photographs of portrait heads at every stage of making — from blocked-out forms with construction lines still drawn across the clay, through developing features, to finished faces with hair, jewellery and modelled detail

Every sculpture begins as a simple block of clay. From this starting point, the figure gradually emerges through a process of observation, shaping, refining and reworking.

The photographs shown here follow the development of the Fashion Designer portrait — from the initial block-out to the completed sculpture. Each stage records a moment in the transformation, revealing how form, proportion, expression and character are slowly discovered within the clay.

Hand-building is an intentionally slow process. It requires patience and a willingness to respond to the material as the sculpture develops. For me, the process is as important as the finished work — the marks, adjustments and imperfections become part of the journey from clay to sculpture.

© 2026 Lee Anchor Sculpture. All rights reserved. I acknowledge the Gubbi Gubbi (Kabi Kabi) people as the traditional custodians of this land on which we walk, work, learn and gather. I honour and pay respects to their ancestors, elders and emerging generations.