Chance to 'discover' sculptures

Stephen Hitchin has created sculptures for Merseyside public places

A selection of work by Liverpool sculptor Stephen Hitchin is exhibited at the University of Liverpool's Victoria Gallery and Museum (VGM).

Hitchin has created sculptures for many of Merseyside's public places including Queens Square and Calderstones Park.

Works from the last two years are displayed alongside preliminary drawings and photographs.

The free exhibition 'as long as it takes' is open from 3 November, 2009 to 30 January, 2010.

The VGM is open Tuesday to Saturday 1000 - 1700GMT.

Exhibits will be dotted around the VGM for visitors to 'discover' as they move through the gallery.

Choice of material

Stephen Hitchin, who was born in Liverpool in 1953, works with a variety of materials including metals, stained glass, ceramics and bronze.

"I was first given the opportunity to work with stone as an art student at Liverpool Polytechnic and learnt about the materials by camping, living and working at a quarry in Staffordshire," says Stephen Hitchin.

"This was the beginning of what has become a lifelong relationship with both the quarry and the material."

In 2000 Stephen Hitchin returned to Merseyside to lead the BA Fine Art Programme at Wirral Arts School, his recent work has looked at the fragility of human bodies, and is reflected in a 2008 commission for the University of Liverpool's Cedar House, Kardia and Fields of Gold.

"Stephen's commission for us marked a new direction in his work and it seems appropriate to highlight this with an exhibition of his recent work," says Matthew Clough, Director of the Victoria Gallery and Museum.

"His sculpture is not solely shaped by his ideas but also the choice of material, and visitors can see this in the contrasting techniques and effects achieved with carved stone and polished marble."