Field Notes: Toby Cotterill
Welcome to ‘Field Notes’, a series of short conversations with fellow creatives delving into their relationship with certain landscapes. One of the most exciting and interesting parts of running Contour Map Collection is learning people’s stories behind the pieces they commission; discovering what makes them connect with the soil and skies, or bricks and mortar of those special places.
With Toby’s love of the outdoors, both in and outside of his work, I thought he’d be the perfect first guest for ‘Field Notes’.
Toby Cotterill is a jeweller, living and working in the beautiful South Pennine town Hebden Bridge with his family, surrounded by rolling moorland and craggy woods. Having grown up on a farm on the West Welsh coast, he’s at home in wild and rugged places. If he’s not in his workshop, you’ll most likely find him picking his way nimbly along a muddy trail in his running shoes on a hill somewhere above the town.
To create his fantastical forms, Toby uses traditional silversmithing techniques, forging sheet silver over steel stakes and into pitch and wooden formers, using hammers and punches. Three- dimensional forms are articulated, fused, and finished with enamels, gold or oxides to create lively, humorous pieces of wearable sculpture inspired by the natural world and the process of making.
Q - If you were to commission a bespoke contour map piece, what landscape would it feature?
A- Landscapes and mountains are really important to me. We used to climb Cadair Idris (a mountain in South Snowdonia) with a few other families, every New Year Day, from the age of about 10, for several years. I’ve not been up there for a decade or so but the glimpses of the paths, scenery and views are etched into my brain. We’ll probably go back this year with my dad, who’s 73 and legs are playing up; it might be the last time we get to go up there together. My son’s middle name is Idris after the mountain.
The whole of Snowdonia is very special to me, partly as I grew up in West Wales. I’ve run the Welsh 3000’s (15 of the highest peaks in Wales over 3000ft) a couple of times, both with friends, which made it special. I think the effort and commitment required to do a challenge like that heightens the experience, and makes the memories of your surroundings vivid and more intense.
The answer to your hypothetical question though would probably be running the Bob Graham Round, a 66 mile loop over 42 Lake District mountains, which I did in June in 21 hrs 47 minutes to be exact! It was really hard, but also really brilliant, and again, the memories of the landscapes, mountains, paths and experiences will live with me forever.
Q - Do landscapes play a role in your own work?
A - I would say the landscape plays a big role in how I function, but maybe not as direct inspiration. Apart from developing a gritstone finish, using a piece of local stone to texture wedding rings, my work is inspired by arthropods etc so creature rather than land based.
The landscape where I live and run (probably very similar to the hills and moors around Sheffield) functions as a beautiful release for body and mind, and is vital for my mental wellbeing. That space and freedom you give the brain when out on a run also helps me with idea generation and working through problems.
I love pushing myself, and accomplishing challenges like the Bob Graham gives me confidence in other areas of life, like making the work I want to and applying for big shows.
Visit Toby’s website: www.tobycotterill.co.uk
Instagram: @tobyjewellery