Tanya Russell has become well known over the last 30 years for her life-like and vibrant animal sculptures. For Tanya, her practice is not only about capturing the animals she sculpts with marks and movement – it is about our relationships with those animals and their welfare. Tanya apprenticed for 7 years with her parents, sculptors Lorne McKean FRBS and Edwin Russell FRBS and after practising as a sculptor for a number of years, she founded The Art Academy in London Bridge, now a degree-validated and thriving art college. She is also the author of ‘Modelling and Sculpting the Figure’. Tanya has completed many public and private commissions nationally and internationally, including 8 large public commissions in London. Tanya exhibits in gardens and galleries across the country. Many of Tanya’s animal sculptures have been sculpted to raise money for animal and welfare charities. She has volunteered with a number of charities, where she has helped care for rescued wildlife and rehomed dogs in need. Now 10 per cent of proceeds from all Tanya’s sales go to animal charities, including the Dogs Trust, David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, and the All Creatures Great and Small Animal Sanctuary. “I’m always asking myself, how can my artwork better the lives of animals? How can I use my art to explore our understanding of nature and the animals we live alongside.”