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Biography

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The Seeker

My adult life began unexpectedly at 18, on the cold bright
autumn streets of Newcastle upon Tyne. I had woken up to
find myself a misplaced undergraduate, studying a degree
in Applied Physics & Microelectronics.

I was utterly baffled by and uninterested in this subject
and somewhat shocked that I had agreed to it all.
Though the lure of leaving home and the call to adventure
was strong in me.

I dropped out at the end of the first term, to the relief of
all, except perhaps my parents. I’d rarely attended lectures,
spending most of my time in the library looking at
reproductions of Jackson Pollock paintings, reading and
writing poems and listening to music. My ever-expanding
vinyl collection had followed me east, forming the bulk of
my belongings.

There was poetry in my soul, music in my heart and a
seekers’ fire in my imagination.


Manchester 1990

I returned home raw and energised to play guitar in a
band I’d formed with school friends a few years earlier.

Back in my native Manchester: the centre of the music
universe at this time, I wrote songs and completed a sound
recording diploma at Spirit Studios.

I realised I was an artist, a poet, a creator, a maker.

I took the art foundation course at University College
Salford: Somewhat astounded that doing what you loved
was in fact an option in education.

Inspired and alight as I was, I passed with distinction
and headed for London, to study a degree in Fine Art-
Painting at Central Saint Martin’s School of Art.


London

At the Charing Cross Road studios and in the nearby
pubs of Soho, I found my people; like minds, like souls
and likely loins.

British Art was the focus of the world, and London the
locus for this energy. I experimented with many forms of
expression; poetry, painting, video, performance art,
writing, installation, street art and landscape
interventions. We made events and happenings in our
St. Martin’s studios and created an underground art
scene and cabaret club in a disused warehouse near
London Fields called the Grey Area.

After graduating with a First, I began a collaboration and
life long friendship with Igor Jocic, graphic designer and
creative director. Under the moniker of backdoor and later
SandersonJocic, we produced, created and curated a number
of genre blending events, projects and ventures.

It became clear that I had a talent for copywriting, brand
voice creation and concept development: a commercial strength
to marry the wilder side of creativity; which put food on
the table and funded my purely creative ventures. I worked
on a number of projects with business startups, individual
artists, designers, creators and established companies.

Simultaneously I delved deeper into a growing fascination
with woodworking, building and space creation. Built on my
feeling for the beauty of materials, and a childhood lego obsession;
manifesting through furniture making, interior design, construction
and sculpting, and often-times a combination of all these.

I lived in a self-constructed, hovering nest of rooms and
platforms; balconies and stairways. The grandly named
‘Sky Palace’, hanging from the roof of an old
furniture factory near Well Street in Hackney.

Next came a three year ACME artists’ residency at the
Firestation, Bow: An opportunity to consolidate my ideas
as an artist, writer and maker; and unbeknownst to me, a
spring board for my escape from urban life. In unconscious
anticipation I collected seeds from the London parks and
grew a miniature arboretum on my roof terrace.


To The Woods

A commission by maverick book dealer and connoisseur
Simon Finch, to create a bookcase for his restoration of a
classic butterfly winged arts and crafts house: Voewood
in North Norfolk, gave me a taste for country living.
This resonated so strongly within me, that I knew it was
time to leave the city and discover the soil in my blood.

I was shown The Shed on a bleak November day by the
owner Lord Hastings, as a possible place to work; a semi-
derelict forestry shed on the edge of 800 acres of beautiful
and varied woodland. I fell in love with the feel of the
place and knew I’d found home. Moving in immediately
and setting up a shanty camp to get through the first
Norfolk winter.

I conveyed my potted London trees on my Land Rover roof-
rack and planted them in the earth, where today a young
woodland firmly stands.

So began a period of deep ecology; connection with the
land, and a retreat from urban life. A time of solitude
and of using my hands to build a home. A poetry of living
and thought. I learned from the woods about trees, plants,
creatures and their ways: I learned the axe, the froe,
the maul and the chainsaw; the tractor, the mattock,
the shovel and the spade.

I learned the seasons, the winds and the weather.

I grew my own food; I foraged for mushrooms, nuts, herbs,
leaves and berries. I hunted and ate rabbit and pheasant,
pigeon and squirrel.

Then I took on the care of 65 acres of mixed woodland,
and managed them for timber, sculpture materials, fuel,
wildlife, and always for beauty. Exploring a new and
ancient way of being; a holistic symbiosis with the
living wood.

In 2008 I expanded an existing glade in the woods and
established a woodland venue and business: The Clearing.
Where I hosted and collaborated on well-being, personal
development and creativity retreats, events and workshops.

‘A gathering place in the heart of the woods
dedicated to self discovery, healing and creativity.
Bringing together accomplished teachers with those seeking
to learn more about themselves, each other and the world.’


Father

My closest friend from Salford drowned on his honeymoon.
He was my brother and shadow throughout the London years.
His death was like a hammer-blow to my life. I decided to
create a tribute to his troubled genius by compiling a book
of his letters, poems, drawings and rants in collaboration
with Igor Jocic.

John Collinson: Salford was published.

Something shifted deep within. I got married and two
children were born under the roof I had made.

Parenthood brought an expansion and desire to build
community. We set up a Steiner influenced parent and child
group called Mighty Oaks which ran for 10 years; serving over
100 local families and evolving into a woodland class:
Foxes, and a purpose built classroom which I designed and
built with money we raised through crowdfunding.

As the children aged I created and led Jedi School to follow
on. A weekly class for homeschool children, based outdoors,
blending; bush skills, crafting and building, art, music,
martial arts, tree climbing, gardening and self sufficiency.


Wood Bone Iron Stone

2009 saw my first solo exhibition: Wood Bone Iron Stone.
A body of work I had been creating in the preceding years,
as I explored Norfolk; a new direction for me as an
artist. These sculptural assemblages were a fusion of
found objects, natural materials and crafted local wood.

This vein was mined further with Herd, where I filled the
landscape with a host of sculptural characters, as a part
of the Art Pilgrimage group exhibition at Mount Amelia,
Ingoldisthorp, West Norfolk.

The Clearing was now very much in its stride hosting a
varied program of well being personal development and
creative events. The Storywalks Cycle was a four part
seasonal series of events created in collaboration with
renowned storyteller Hugh Lupton. Working with the
annual variations of the woodland environment, I devised a
route for each walk, with sculptural installations and
performance pieces along the way to compliment
Hugh’s storytelling.


Recent Work

2019 saw my return to commercial copywriting, working on two
startup projects, One in holistic health and the other in
next-generation social media; both in service to the greater good.

This year also saw the publication of my first collection of
poems: The Head of John the Baptist; and initiation into the
world of open-mic performance poetry.

In December 2020 I launched a podcast: The Listening
Heartfelt conversational journeys with fascinating people.
Authentic human connection, exploring all around the edges
and everywhere in between.

And Spring 2021 saw the launch of Poet's Acre and The East Anglia Forest Garden Project.

A culmination of my thinking and experiences on the land, my intention from here on,is to spend my time creating a forest garden of edible, medicinal and useful plants. Experimenting with growing as many different species as possible to create a thriving and resilient ecosystem and venue for land-based workshops and events. In collaboration with accomplished teachers, practitioners and organisations.

A place of beauty where people rediscover the joy and health of a grounded connection
with the land, themselves and each other


Renaissance & Mastery

All through my journey I have sought out teachers and
experimented with arts and practices that further my
progression towards ‘becoming human’. I have investigated
and studied many forms of personal development and the
pursuit of self-mastery continues to be a strong attractor.

I have gathered much from yoga, Authentic Movement,
Wim Hof’s method, Five Rhythms dancing, Contact
Improvisation, sound healing, listening circles, drumming,
meditation, wild swimming and an ever deepening symbiosis
with the land where I live.

In my work, art and life; and in service to my family,
community and the wider world, I seek to better myself and
contribute what I can to the navigation of these interesting
times. My foundational drive is to express fully what wants
to move through me, and to help bring into being a thriving future
for humanity and all of life.