About Christian Newton
Christian Newton is a self-taught chainsaw woodcarver from Northern NSW.
His body of works reveals an imaginative, often whimsical humourous abstraction of simple elements sourced and inspired by his local environment.
Christian works exclusively in reclaimed materials such as stormfallen timber logs, landscapers waste and tree stumps destined for a woodchipper
He has a strong ethos to his art making.
“i refuse to kill a tree for the sake of art, but if i find it already fallen – you betcha i’ll find a way to haul it home and make use of it.
This ethic extends to his choice of tools; he is often to be found restoring vintage woodworking tools and frankensteining together old chainsaws to sculpt his work with.
“New is fleeting – but old is forever. I honestly believe there is an intrinsic beauty in giving materials and tools a second life”
Christians work often features his alter-ego ‘Bob Fathom’ as a vehicle for his narrative. Bob is silent, chubby and undeniably loveable.
2022 will be Christian’s third year exhibiting at Swell Sculpture Festival.
2022 SWELL ARTWORK – The Moon, the Stars and Bob, Christian Newton
Since time immemorial, the sky has beguiled us all.
Inspiration for poets,
hope for the lonely, a beacon for navigators,
an excuse for our actions, an insight into our fates
and a witness to our whole lives.
Silent and slow and yet never still.
Bob knows this.
quiet your mind, raise your eyes upwards and share a moment with him to appreciate the cosmic splendour happening above us constantly.
Instagram: @chainsawnewton
Facebook: @floodof54
Come and see for yourself at SWELL Sculpture Festival, Pacific Parade, Currumbin 9-18 September.