Ray's Sheds

Ray’s Sheds by Jem Southam is a photographic study of the seven sheds in which sculptor Ray Exworth (1930-2015) worked in the west of Cornwall. Few have seen, or will ever see, the sheds in person. This new book is both a valuable archival document of the artist’s output, and as Southam’s tribute to the wonders of his friend’s lifetime of creative toil and endeavour.

Once described as a ‘sculptor of probable genius’ by Bruce Bernard, Exworth’s work was never widely exhibited. The seven sheds in the west of Cornwall house his most significant endeavours—complex works combining plaster figures with found and crafted objects to create floor to ceiling tableaux. Upon entering any of the sheds, visitors encounter the inscrutable cathedral of Exworth’s mind. Southam’s careful photographs and text both preserve and invite us into this world.

The genesis on the book was on a sunny September morning in 1983, when Southam received a phone call asking him to photograph Exworth’s studio. He travelled to meet the artist and amazed by his work, exposed a few sheets of film both in colour and black and white. This unexpected commission led to a lifelong friendship with Exworth and his wife Susie.

‘Each time I visited, through the hours of talk and laughter, I would wait wondering when to broach the matter of the making of more pictures. Ray kept a secretive, private, protective shroud over his work, he artfully deflected all such enquiries, and it was not until he died thirty years later that I once again entered the sheds with a camera.’

Jem Southam

The eldest of five sons, Exworth was born in Ipswich, Suffolk. His father worked in an iron foundry and visiting his place of work, combined with his experiences as a child during World War II, had a profound effect on the artist. Initially, Exworth worked in the Meteorological Office before studying at Ipswich School of Art, and resolving to become a sculptor. He went on to study at the Royal College of Art (1955-58) and the year after graduation he married Susan Kalman and set off on his motorbike to establish the sculpture department at Falmouth University. After the death of his father in 1985, Exworth worked for nine years on his most significant work, ‘The Circus’. After abandoning this he began a series of intricate linked works in his various sheds. After his death, the Ray Exworth Wroxham Turst was established to preserve his work on a smallholding in the Hamlet of Releath in Cornwall, as an inspirational educational resource.

Born in Bristol in 1950, Jem Southam’s work is housed in major collections including Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam; Museum Folkwang, Essen; the Yale Center for British Art, Newhaven; His work has been the subject of numerous international solo exhibitions notably, Tate St Ives (2004), V&A Museum, London (2006) and The Lowry, Salford (2009).