David Petersen (born 1944) is a Welsh

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

, cultural commentator and television presenter based in

St. Clears St Clears ( ; ) is a town on the River Taf and a Community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire, Wales. At the 2011 census, the population was 2,995. The community includes the small settlements of Bancyfelin and Pwlltrap. It is bordered by the ...

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire (; or informally ') is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. ...

. He is particularly known for his metal sculptures of

dragons A dragon is a magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in Western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depict ...

. Petersen was born in Cardiff in 1944, the son of Jack Petersen (1911–1990), a boxer who held the British Heavyweight title on two occasions. archived in Petersen worked in the GKN steelworks in Cardiff before studying fine art at Newport College of Art (1961–1965). He is an elected member of the

Royal Cambrian Academy The Royal Cambrian Academy of Art (RCA) is a centre of excellence for art in Wales. Its main gallery is located in Conwy and it has over a hundred members. image:Plas Mawr.jpg, 240px, Plas Mawr, Conwy Early history During the 19th century there w ...

, and has served as chairman of the British Artist Blacksmiths Association. For several years Petersen led the Welsh delegation to the

Festival Interceltique de Lorient __NOTOC__ The (French), Emvod Ar Gelted An Oriant (Breton) or Inter-Celtic Festival of Lorient in English, is an annual Celts (modern), Celtic festival, located in the city of Lorient, Brittany, France. It was founded in 1971 by . This annual ...

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

. He resigned from the festival committee in 2008 in protest at the content of the Welsh pavilion. Petersen's sons Aaron, Toby and Gideon are sculptors who sometimes work collaboratively with their father.

Major works

Mametz Wood Memorial (1987)

The Mametz Wood memorial commemorates an action of the

38th (Welsh) Division The 38th (Welsh) Division (initially the 43rd Division, later the 38th (Welsh) Infantry Division and then the 38th Infantry (Reserve) Division) of the British Army was active during both the First and Second World Wars. In 1914, the division ...

of the British Army during the First Battle of the Somme in 1916. The memorial, located on the site of the action in northern France, is of a large red dragon holding

barbed wire Roll of modern agricultural barbed wire Barbed wire, also known as barb wire or bob wire (in the Southern and Southwestern United States), is a type of steel fencing wire constructed with sharp edges or points arranged at intervals along the ...

, mounted on a stone plinth.

Coal, Steel and Water (1989)

A steel sculpture mounted on polished granite located in the foyer of County Hall, Cardiff. Commissioned by Allied Steel and Wire as a gift to

South Glamorgan County Council South Glamorgan County Council () was the local government authority that administered the county of South Glamorgan, Wales from its creation in 1974 until its abolition in 1996. History Local government in England and Wales was reorganised in 1 ...

National Millennium Beacon (1999)

Together with his sons, Petersen won a competition to make the National Millennium Beacon for the millennium celebrations. The large

stainless steel Stainless steel, also known as inox, corrosion-resistant steel (CRES), or rustless steel, is an iron-based alloy that contains chromium, making it resistant to rust and corrosion. Stainless steel's resistance to corrosion comes from its chromi ...

sculpture was erected on the porch of Cardiff City Hall.

Postage stamp (1999)

Petersen designed the definitive issue of the Welsh second class postage stamp, which features a

leek A leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of ''Allium ampeloprasum'', the broadleaf wild leek (synonym (taxonomy), syn. ''Allium porrum''). The edible part of the plant is a bundle of Leaf sheath, leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a "s ...

carved from wood. Petersen's sons Toby and Gideon designed the first class stamp which features a dragon.

Howard Winstone (2001)

A bronze statue of the world champion boxer Howard Winstone (1939–2000), located in a shopping centre in

Merthyr Tydfil Merthyr Tydfil () is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydfil, daughter of K ...

Television

Petersen is also known as a television presenter on historical and cultural topics. His work includes ''Stop, Look, Listen: Tales from Wales'' (

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

, 2002) and ''When the Romans Came to Wales'' (Channel 4, 2003).

Political activity

Petersen was a

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; , ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, and often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left, Welsh nationalist list of political parties in Wales, political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from th ...

candidate in the 1999 National Assembly election for the Brecon and Radnorshire constituency. He gained 2,356 votes, 8.1% of the overall vote.

External links

* * ''republished in'' * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Petersen, David 1944 births Living people 20th-century British sculptors 20th-century Welsh male artists 21st-century Welsh male artists Artists from Cardiff Welsh male sculptors 21st-century Welsh sculptors