by Lorraine Gibson.

Regular readers may recall Gary Smith, the welder who transforms old cutlery and unwanted metal into works of art, and who last year donated a piece called Flutterby to the Macmillan Caring Locally Christchurch charity auction, raising nearly £900.
The Dorset artist who works in Christchurch does private commissions and commercial pieces, including a show-stopping sculpture inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, that adorns an apartment block in Westbourne.
This year he donated a new piece called The Visitor which was auctioned at the Macmillan charity ball in the Hilton Hotel, Bournemouth two weeks ago, raising more than £1,000.

Gary Smith- Welder

Gary Smith- Welder

“A year had gone by since the last Flutterby Ball and I promised I would do another sculpture for 2022,” says Gary.
“I made The Visitor specifically to raise money for the small local hospice and I’d like to thank MMP Electrovibe UK who offered their electro polishing services for free.
A demon for detail, Gary describes how he made the poignant sculpture.
“The hand is made out of stainless steel washers, each one shaped to make it much more realistic, this means it takes longer to make but well worth it I think!
“The hand itself took around 20 hours. The butterfly was made out of recycled Kings cutlery which I heated to get some colours in to it. It took about five hours.
“The sculpture was then mounted on a cherry wood base.”
“The event is called Flutterby, so I base my sculpture around butterflies, so this year I thought of a more personal idea; this being a hand with a butterfly on the finger.
“Many people see butterflies as representations of a loved one who has passed away.” macmillanlocal.org.
garysmithweldedart.co.uk.