Pioneer

Gareth Williams makes doll-like figures with blown glass heads and beautifully made sewn and stuffed leather or fabric bodies. These highly stylised works, each with their own strong personality, make powerful statements about human nature and relationships.

'Pioneer' can be interpreted as a crawling baby spaceman rushing off to explore the universe, and indeed the sculpture was conceived at a time when Williams' own baby son was crawling around the house. But, as is often the case with Williams' work, Pioneer also has more sinister connotations.