Justin Stuart

Sculptor

Justin Stuart is a sculptor whose work draws inspiration from the ocean. Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, he brings his background in carnival arts to the Scottish Borders, where he transforms upcycled scrap copper into captivating pieces. His sculptures celebrate marine colours, fluid curvilinear patterns and the extraordinary fauna of the sea. Each work is a testament to his innovative approach and love of the aquatic world.

Work by Justin Stuart

About Justin Stuart

  • Justin is inspired by the ocean.  His work takes the themes of the sea as the building blocks to create his pieces.  The colours, the curvilinear patterns and the extraordinary fauna all fuse together in the workshop. 

    Justin hails from Cape Town, South Africa where he worked on, and taught, carnival arts for many years, building floats and creating giant costumes and puppets.

    He has been in the Scottish Borders for several years and uses salvaged copper to create his sculptures.

  • Motivation

    Justin is inspired by the ocean.  His work takes the themes of the sea as the building blocks to create his pieces.  The colours, the curvilinear patterns and the extraordinary fauna all fuse together in the workshop. 

    Copper is the medium that he enjoys working with the most. All his pieces are made from upcycled scrap copper, which already has character.  It has a malleability that increases with heating, and the use of the simple chemistry creates a surface alchemy to give the copper the colours and hues of the life aquatic.