Sculptor Shawn Williamson (Art and Design and English, 1995) will unveil his latest creation, the Piloto Luis Pardo portrait sculpture in Portland stone at Albert Embankment, London at the International Maritime Museum on 23 November 2021. Piloto Pardo was the brave Chilean Navy Officer who rescued Ernest Shackleton’s crew off Elephant Island Antartica. However, many of Shawn’s previous sculptures have local links and are located near or on both Lancaster university campuses

Shawn both studied and taught students part time whilst at university. He first trained as an architectural stone carver and then went on to be the pupil and assistant to Josefina de Vasconcellos MBE. He has created thirty public commissions, mainly in stone, in the UK and further afield. Locally, in 1985 he created Medieval Knight, which stands outside the law courts in Lancaster and in 1994 he created Mary and Babe for Lancaster Priory. He has two major sculptures on the campus at the University of Cumbria and was commissioned for three major works at Lancaster University which are the Bull Calf, Angel in Boots and Jack, a working man’s terrier.

He has partnered with numerous companies and in 2001 was the first to collaborate on a bi-national arts programme post 9/11 to create a suitable memorial interacting with prominent US senators. In 2007 he received a fellowship from the Royal Society of Arts and Industry for his work with struggling communities. He is also a Brother of the Art Workers’ Guild in Bloomsbury.

Shawn is presently resident sculptor at the English Lakes Hotels based at Low Wood, Windermere and the sculptor for the Gorton Monastery, Manchester.

Shawn says: ‘My time in Lancaster was important to me as I was born in Morecambe and it was great to connect with the University and St Martin’s through studying my degree in the local area.’