About Andrew Swinley,
Architectural Stone Carver
Meet Andrew Swinley, Architectural Stone Carver & Sculptor
When I was 9, on a bright spring morning, I had an epiphany that I wanted to do sculpture, I wanted to carve figures. At 19, I served a traditional Apprenticeship in Stone Masonry with Cathedral Works Organization in Chichester, England. At 23, I decided to attend the prestigious City & Guilds of London Art School. There I studied Sculpture in Stone where I specialized in Figurative Sculpture. While I was a student I cycled around Greece, taking in the ancient classical sites. At 26, I earned a Diploma in Figurative Sculpture from the City & Guilds of London Art School. After a further two years working for Cathedral Works Organization, I embarked on running my own business for the next 20 years as A.J.B.S. Stonecarving.
I have experience in most architectural styles. I can undertake stone carving of any complexity, in restoration as well as new build. My work can be seen on prominent London buildings including Holborn Viaduct- Atlas pair, Royal Coat of Arms at Westminster Magistrates’ Court and the Palace of Westminster-hunky punks. Other works in England can be seen at Chichester Cathedral-gargoyles, Birmingham Town Hall- restoration and Buckingham Palace- restoration. In British Columbia, my stone carving is at Mission Hill Estate Winery in Kelowna- four-sided keystone, Flack Block in Vancouver- spandrel dragons and Vermeer Building in Vancouver-coats of arms.
I have now been doing stone carving for over 40 years in England and British Columbia. When I first landed in British Columbia I worked as a stone carver in Abbotsford for Architectural Stone Masonry with Tony Rogac. Then I next carved stone for Red Leaf Stone, while there I was awarded the Natural Stone Craftsman of the Year 2016 from the Marble Institute of America in recognition of my life’s work carving stone.
Currently, I am in business as Andrew Swinley Stone Carver, working out of my carving studio on Vancouver Island, serving all your stone carving and sculptural needs in North America and beyond.
Andrew Swinley, Dip. Sculpt.