Seeking to escape from the amorous advances of Apollo, river nymph Daphne prays to be rescued. Mid-chase she is transformed into a laurel tree, her feet rooting into the ground as her arms begin to sprout branches. Olive Wooton’s sculpture captures this dramatic point in the mythological tale. Daphne’s metamorphosis is already taking place but none of the human emotion is lost from her partially hidden face, enclosed in its canopy of bronze leaves.
At 182cm Daphne cuts an imposing figure in the gallery. We also have a bronze bust of the same subject which you can view here, or follow the link to see Daphne surrounded by fellow trees on the BBC website.
Olive Wooton was elected an Associate Member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors in 1992. For more of her work, including her sculptures from the Rime of The Ancient Mariner, click here.
Olive Wooton was elected an Associate Member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors in 1992. For more of her work, including her sculptures from the Rime of The Ancient Mariner, click here.
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