AGM 2026

President Laura Ford PRSS opened the AGM welcoming everyone and confirming that the meeting met the quorum requirement of 25 attendees and that 44 ballots had been received. Laura also spoke about the eleven members we had lost this past year and members took a moment to quietly remember them:

ANTHONY HAWKEN FRSS

Anthony joined the Society in 1977. He was primarily a figurative sculptor with work in collections at the British Museum, V&A, Citibank and Charlton Athletic football club. He sculpted portraits of Melvyn Bragg, Nicholas Partsons, Norman Lamont and Patrick Stewart among others.

CHRIS McCAMMON MRSS

Chris’s daughter said: My dad was almost 83 and continued to sculpt prolifically until the last few months of his life. Although he was not a very active member of the Society, he was very proud of the accolade and sculpting remained central to his life.

JANET SCRYMGEOUR-WEDDERSON FRSS

Janet studied with the sculptor Alastair Ross FRSS in the early 1970s and was known for her portrait commissions. She joined the Society in 1975 and was elected a Fellow in 1980.

JONATHAN BLAKELY MRSS

Clive Duncan FRSS has shared this personal tribute: Jonathan was a very quiet and thoughtful sculptor who was able to find his forms in stone with a complete understanding of the totality of three dimensions.

His clay modelling was equally assured without being anatomically overworked. During my time as head of sculpture at the Sir John Cass he was invited to teach making a vital contribution to the figurative work in the school.

An amusing memory of Jonathan was that he owned an old VW Post Office van parked in Clever Square outside the City & Guilds Art School in which he would spend the occasional night. One of his great friends was Mr Pound who was the Blacksmith/tool maker at the Oval who made the finest stone carving chisels.

MICHAEL PEGLER MRSS

Michael’s practice focused on the carved form and his sculptures incorporated an implied interior logic with full volumes that feature chiselled textures or highly polished surfaces. In 2021 he was commissioned by Derby Museum to make a work inspired by the Derby Ram Trail.

NADIN SENFT MRSS

Nadin received a diploma in Fine Art from City & Guilds of London Art School and joined the Society in 1980 before retiring in 2008.

OLIVE WOOTTON MRSS

Olive studied at Goldsmiths College of Art and in 1955 was represented in the Young Contemporaries show in London. She returned to sculpture with renewed energy following the untimely death of her husband, Gordon, and was a life member.

TIM HARRISON MRSS

Tim joined the Society in 2002 working from his studio in a disused barn in Tisbury. His many public commissions can be found at Southampton Airport, the Russell-Cotes Art Gallery in Bournemouth, Epson College and Chatsworth House.

BARRY MARTIN MRSS

Barry studied at Goldsmith’s College of Art and later taught in many colleges including the RCS, The Slade, the RA schools and St Martin’s. His kinetic sculptures often combined steel, motors, light and rhythm invited viewers to experience form as something alive and continuously evolving. 

BRYAN KNEALE MBE RA FRSS

Bryan Kneale originally studied painting at Douglas School of Art followed by the Royal Academy schools. In 1960 he moved from painting to sculpture and by 1963 he was teaching at the Royal College of Art. He was also Professor of Sculpture at the RA Schools from 1980-1987.

Bryan curated and exhibited in many shows. For his sculpture, Captain Quilliam, he received the 2007 Marsh Award for Excellence in Public Sculpture. He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 2019 for services to British Art.

DEREK MORRIS PPRSS

Derek Morris joined the Society in 1994 and was its President from 1998 to 2004. Under his presidency, the Society grew substantially, became much more internationally focused and the Board ensured important repairs were made to Dora House. 

In his obituary for the Guardian, Martin Holman wrote: 

Derek grew up in the atmosphere of making; he was six when he mixed his first bowl of plaster. His mother was an accomplished weaver and embroiderer and father, was a draughtsman. His elder sister, Jean, was the first female student of jewellery at the Royal College of Art.

Derek studied Fine Art at Newcastle University and Chelsea School of Art and was the Head of Sculpture at Norwich School of Art 1971-1990. His career as a sculptor was marked by different phases largely due to changes in his choice of materials. He wrote, “if I cannot enter my studio on a regular basis, my life becomes disjointed and lacking in serious purpose”. 

Director Caroline Worthington gave her director's report followed by Laura's president speech and the meeting closed.