Sculpture Information

The inspiration for this piece came from a period when I had irregular heart rhythms so had it monitored for 24 hours. The original piece of Portland Stone was irregular in shape and reminded me of a heart. The heart is so complicated, I found it impossible to envisage from three dimensions. So, I first had to make a model.

We know much about the structure of the heart and its physiology, it’s a complex organ with its own electrical impulses and is just the size of a fist. It beats about one hundred thousand times a day pumping life-giving blood cells around the body in a network of veins and arteries.

However there have been records from transplant patients who have experienced personality changes including different preferences, alterations in temperament and emotions, gained memories from the recipient and even changes in identity. It has been found that as well as the brain, the heart has its own memory cells (intracardiac neurological memory) which raises interesting questions. Before the dawn of scientific study, the heart was seen as the metaphorical seat of our desire and the source of our love and motivations. This may have an element of truth.