Brit born Sculptor Max Patte says that living in New Zealand has provided apt inspiration for his latest project, a sculpture dedicated to Wellington where he has been based for the last ten months.

Max may have only lived in New Zealand for ten months, but it's been long enough for the country to leave an impression on this artist. The combination of living away from his home country and his family has provided some isolating times for Max. Luckily in Wellington, he is only minutes away from the harbour, where he found a special place close to his heart that inspired his most recent piece, 'Solace In The Wind' (pictured).

"It's a piece personal to me both in terms of its subject matter and its chosen site", says Max. "There is a particular spot on Wellington's harbour front where I have come to sit and lose myself in thought and find solace. It is here, alone, in 'my place' in what has become my city, with my face in the wind and back to the world that I have felt a sense of relief, comfort and homeliness."

The figure in 'Solace In The Wind' is a man arching his back to embrace the world's elements and release any negative thoughts. "I've attempted to show the figure evoking a desire to be alone with his thoughts", explains Max. "Naked and vulnerable, his physicality reflects the psychological state that each of us have experienced at some time in our lives. Retaining a classical sense of strength and control he leans almost precariously into the wind over the waters edge. It captures that moment before letting go, both physically and emotionally."

The expression on his face is deliberately ambiguous, says Max, to show the figure letting his thoughts float out to the ocean. "The edge of the sea offers me a sense of serenity", he says. "This is where the world literally opens up and we surrender ourselves to the elements. Here I always feel I am able to find a place that offers peace and clarity, a place to re-evaluate life and find inspiration. At this spot, in these moments the world is literally at our feet. Our choices are open. The possibilities that life offers to each of us seem limitless. All we have to do is surrender ourselves to them, as the sculpture suggests with the fall of the arms and tilt of the open palm."

The piece has been cast in iron to rust deliberately with age. "It has been designed to form a life of its own as it ages", explains Max. "The physical effects of the elements become increasingly evident. It is as if nature itself is lending a hand by creating its own art, doing the painting for us, creating natural striations, colours and patterns that only nature can create over time.

To learn more about Max's work at the Workshop, click here.