Patricia Spero

My background is in music as I am a classically trained harpist and have issued many albums of solo harp music. 
I have been turning wood for over 10 years, and my work is purely decorative. I use mostly English woods, ash, elm, yew, sycamore and hornbeam, and I inlay them with semi precious stones such as turquoise, malachite, cornelian and mother of pearl, and sometimes with beads. Many of my bowls and platters are coloured and some wire brushed, as I feel that texture and colour enhance the beauty of the stones. My inspiration comes from coloured patterns of Indian and Japanese paintings and vessels.
A large body of my work was in collaboration with my late partner Gabor Lacko. We produced very thin turned bowls and platters which are pierce-carved and coloured. Here the inspiration is nature using flowers, leaves and trees to decorate the wood.