Jumping back on the Tube

Like most kids, I used to make things out of cardboard tubes. I’m not sure if it started before I was old enough to see it done on TV programmes like ‘Take Hart’ or ‘Blue Peter’, or whether they inspired it. Whichever way around, my mum collected them for me. Funnily enough, sometimes she still does.

As a child they regularly became space rockets, aeroplanes, or more complex things like the legs of long necked dinosaurs. There’s nothing wrong with any of these, they are perfect, but in the last few years I’ve been revisiting the humble cardboard tube, exploring its properties, and highlighting its versatility.

I’ve spent many years as an adult creating 3D artwork with children, offering them my experience, but also learning from them. Watching them problem-solve, imagine, and innovate sometimes makes you become more like them. If you are lucky, some of their own magical alchemy shoots out a spark and your own creativity happens to be there, and dry enough to catch light.

Let’s face it, cardboard tubes are great, they are free for one thing, readily available, commonplace, and they are strong too. In fact, they are beautifully engineered little curves of possibility.

I often use them precisely because of these properties. Much of my 3D artwork is relief work, built up from a background or base. This really stems from the fact that it is easier for children to construct. Full 3D sculptures require a piece of artwork to stand up, carry its own weight etc, whereas with a relief sculpture the children can focus more on the design and detail, and not have to worry so much about the strength or stability. There are also other benefits though, it’s easier to display, and provides the option for creating a background too, offering extra creative possibilities.