Denis Mitchell

Denis Adeane Mitchell (30 June 1912 – 23 March 1993) was an English abstract sculptor who worked mainly in bronze and wood. Mitchell grew up near Swansea, attending art classes at Swansea School of Art before moving to the St Ives area of Cornwall in 1938. A series of jobs followed over the years, including tin mining which provided him with all the necessary skills in working with stone. In 1949 he became Barbara Hepworth's assistant working with her for ten years. In the same year he co-founded the Penwith Society, and in 1957 began Porthis Textile Prints. It was during this time that he took up sculpture himself, initially in wood with his first bronze sculpture in 1959. By 1960 Mitchell was teaching at the Penzance Grammar and Redruth School of Art. Winning the Arts Council Award in 1966 enabled Mitchell to become a full-time sculptor, living and working in Newlyn. Mitchell’s works have been widely exhibited at home and abroad with sculptures in numerous public collections including the Tate Gallery in London, the Arts Council of Great Britain, the Santa Barbara Museum of Art in California, the National Gallery of New South Wales in Australia, and the National Gallery of Wellington in New Zealand. Mitchell's first sculptures began in wood, slate and stone but after working closely with Barbara Hepworth his style turned to bronze