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In the early days Guy Portelli was happy workingalone in a shed at the bottom of his gardensculpting for the advertising and film industry.

But, as success built, he had to take on extra staff,had to work out PAYE, VAT and keep accounts. Hefound to his horror he was becoming a businessmannot a sculptor; this was not what he had set out to be.

So, he took the radical decision to try to look uponthis state of affairs in a different way, to try to makethe running of his business an art form in its ownright, to include the creative process in hiseveryday business practice. It was this attitude thatled to Guy taking his project to the Dragon’s Den. Itwas the ‘Eureka Moment’, when, by thinking

creatively about how to promote his business, Guywas able to take his art up to the next level. “I had been exhibiting with some of the topgalleries, but still felt that I was a jobbing sculptor.What I needed was a framework where I couldexperiment with concepts and materials, knowingthat the pieces would be exhibited in the publicdomain with the publicity in place to attract anaudience and, to be honest, I am thrilled with whatwe have achieved.”

The Dragons’ input has given Guy the frameworkand structure within which to work, whilst stillallowing him complete creative freedom. Which isgood news because Guy won’t be put in any

By Drew Wi lson

“The Heart Throb is the pulse that connectsa l l o f us , a c ross re l i g i ous d i v i des andcont inents; i t i s a uni fy ing e lement thatopens our eyes and ears to other cu l turesand the ir asp irat ions. I t is a musica l journeywe a l l can share.”

T h e G o l d e n A g eo f t h e P o p I c o n

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opposite: Guy and Frank Sinatra inconstruction

below: Bob Marley, bronze, dim. 70 X70 X70 cm. Edition of 5. (1985)

pigeonhole: he’s always evolving, always re-inventing. He creates art in countless original ways,with new work often looking quite different to hisearlier pieces. But, upon closer scrutiny, you can find certainrecurring themes. There is often an element ofnarrative in Guy’s work. Within the Heart Throbsuite, the Tupac piece is a biography in threedimensions, similarly the Hendrix sculptureillustrates the reaction to the Vietnam War, whilstthe tribute to Frank Sinatra is steeped in thefolklore of the Rat Pack, Las Vegas and the Mafia.

The use of positive and negative interlockingshapes is another stylistic trait that flows throughGuy’s work. That these shapes are frequently madeof lines drawn in space and avoid enclosing the formalso adds coherence. It is a subtle consistency ofapproach which brings a harmony to the wholecollection.

Think of this exhibition as the visual equivalent of arock band’s concept album. If the eighteen

individual sculptures are the tracks, then the albumis a hi-fidelity social history of the last six decades.

This is the attraction of the Pop Icon theme to Guy:it gives him the perfect excuse for controlledexperimentation.

“I feel that Grace Jones most certainly shouldn’t betreated in the same way as Bob Marley. Ininterpreting David Bowie’s role in youth culture Iwouldn’t use the same vocabulary as for The SpiceGirls; they require a different approach.”

The Dragons’ support has also allowed Guy toindulge his whims, to fully express himself, even tomake some mistakes. The timing was good too.Guy has been working on his Pop Icon suite for thepast thirty years. At times it has lain dormant, attimes re-visited. But without the financial backing,the infra structure to fabricate large pieces and hisnow fully developed skill set, Guy couldn’t see howto pull it off, so he has had to wait till now.

“Now is exactly the right time for Heart Throb, nottoo early not too late. I wasn’t ready a decade ago,and in another ten years’ time I might not have theenergy!”

The pieces in Heart Throb aren’t portraits in thetraditional sense, indeed Guy is relieved that hischosen icons haven’t physically sat for him in hisstudio. He’s not that interested in them in real life.It’s the celebrity persona, the stage presence thatintrigues him. Through meticulous research Guybuilds up an in-depth view of his subject: thebackground of the political climate; the prevailingsocial and cultural moods. He absorbs their visualimagery, symbols and metaphors. This is what Guycalls ‘The Shadow’.

“Without the shadow you can’t see the form in itstrue light. Take the Jimi Hendrix sculpture: thewhole ideology of the time came out of the VietnamWar, so to look at Hendrix without superimposinghim against that backdrop doesn’t give enoughsense of time and place. You need the shadow togive form.”

Knowing this, we start to see these shadowselsewhere within the collection: Sinatra and theMafia; Amy and excess; the media’s pre-packagingof the Spice Girls; the Sex Pistols versus theEstablishment - the shadow giving form.

Guy’s broad palette of materials and methods leadshim to some vibrant, sensual and diverseoutcomes. As a boy Guy wanted to be a treasurehunter (think a slightly tubby Indiana Jones), but itseems that a strong sense of self preservation anda low boredom threshold led him into staying athome and making his treasures for himself. He’s still at it, religiously polishing, and adorning hiscreations with mosaic: it’s contemporary idolatry.

And, you can’t help but wonder what futuregenerations might make of these objects of

adoration when archeologists dig them up in athousand years’ time.

Who were these people worshipped as gods? And what sort of society created them?

Heart Throb, Sculptures by Guy Portelli RBA FRBS,runs 25 June - 3 July at the Mall Galleries, London,SW1Y 5DB

opposite: Frank Sinatra - Night andDay, perspex, gold plated aluminiumand diamante, dim 1m X 1m X 70cm.Ed of 5. (2009) Photo by JamesGillham.

above: Guy and the Dragons: PeterJones, Theo Paphitis and James Caan

below: Sex Pistols - Post Punk,aluminium, bronze and mosaic, dim2.2m X 1.2m X 80cm. Ed of 3.(2008)

bottom: John Lee Hooker inworkshop