Newbury Racecourse Chief Executive, Julian Thick and ‘Drinking Horse’ local sculptor, Tom Hiscocks

 

Award-winning sculptor Tom Hiscocks has returned to a place close to his heart with the installation of his work, Drinking Horse, at Newbury Racecourse.

A graduate from the Cambridge Art School with a first-class honours degree in Fine Art, Hiscocks has made a considerable impact with his dynamic sculptures and his work appears in private and public collections across the UK, Europe and the USA. He is also represented by four leading galleries in the UK.

However, Hiscocks is certainly no stranger to Newbury Racecourse having previously worked as a groom in nearby Lambourn with Nick Gaselee and Henry Candy.

He then moved abroad and spent time working in stables in Australia, Ireland and in the US, where he worked for John Gosden at Santa Anita.

“Newbury was one of the first racecourses I ever took a horse to, which makes the opportunity to have one of my latest sculptures here serendipitous,” said Hiscocks, who lives and works nearby in Wiltshire and has also managed the jockeys’ canteen at Newbury, providing refreshments in the weighing room for the last two years.

Over two metres tall and weighing over four tons, Drinking Horse will be sited on the Owners & Trainers Lawn for the duration of the 2018 Flat season.

“I’ve been very lucky because I started installing it on Wednesday and the weather has been amazing ever since,” he said. “Over time, it will change because of the nature of the materials used.

“When I began at art school I was encouraged to move away from horses and a lot of my early work was more about human forms and figures, but about a year or so ago I decided it was time to look at them again – I just know horses really well, I love the way they move, the way they look and think.

“In my work, I’m particularly interested in the way humans interact with each other and the image we give off. We can be different people depending upon how we feel, what’s happening and even the time of day and I’ve tried to reflect that in this work.

“I wanted it to be a piece that you can return to and look at from a different angle and see something different each time and hopefully I have achieved that.”

Hiscocks’ racing experience also extends to having ridden in the National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.

He said: “Racing has always been a part of my life, I’ve always enjoyed being on the racecourse and I’m delighted Newbury have supported my work.”

For more information on Tom Hiscocks, visit tomhiscocks.co.uk and follow @tomhiscocks on Instagram.