Richard Harris (b 1954, Devon) has been making environmental sculpture since 1976. While studying at Gloucestershire College of Art and Design, he chose to work outdoors, building structures from found stone and wood. After his studies, he spent a year based in a Dartmoor studio, further deepening his connection with nature. Harris rose to prominence as the first resident artist at Grizedale Forest in 1977, where he explored specific sites and worked with natural materials to create human-scale works encouraging subtle, intuitive interaction. From 1979–81 he travelled in Australia, becoming aware of Aboriginal relationships with the land, creating Hollow Hill, an earthwork in Melbourne. Returning to the UK, he was drawn to the north east’s growing public art scene, working on major projects in Gateshead and County Durham, including Passage Paving on London’s South Bank and a residency in Wuppertal, Germany. Since 1994, Harris has lived in Wales and worked widely across Europe, Japan, Korea, and Cuba. His sculptures often balance engineering precision and natural form, from polished stainless-steel poles elevating stones in the Weymouth Olympic sculpture to finely cut slate wings at the Senedd in Cardiff, each work reflecting and heightening awareness of its environment.
Group Site Responsive Sculpture Residency 13 – 20th September 2025
During his residency on Enlli, Richard Harris responded to the elemental force of wind and sea, creating work that reflected the movement, energy and harmony between land and water. Inspired by the piles of seaweed thrown ashore by the storm, he explored ideas of natural forms and hidden spaces, using stone and seaweed as his materials. His work became a live response to Enlli’s wild landscape, forming a direct connection between body, materials and the natural elements.