Unique dragonfly lands at Moors Valley Country Park (June 2016)

Constructed from recycled materials, the striking sculpture is the work of eco-sculptor Glenn Martin. Glenn has donated his ‘cyberdragonfly’ to the Park where it now sited by the river overlooking the top of Moors Lake.

With a degree in Three Dimensional Design and a long-held fascination for the natural world, Isle of Wight-based Glenn began creating sculptures 20 years ago. Recent projects include a stunning 4m long plesiasaur created for the Jurassica project and made from satellite dishes and recycled aluminium; ammonites made from sea glass and satellite dishes and a 10m long dinosaur stilt costume. Made from recycled plastic the illuminated ‘recycoraptor’ will feature in the Lyme Regis Walk of Light this August. All his work is based around recycled materials, collecting and reusing waste to create new works of art.

“Making a dragonfly was a particular challenge,” said Glenn. “The finished piece brings together all sorts of plastic waste including plant pots, hair curlers and washing machine tubes. The body had to be strong enough to support the 12ft wingspan so I created that from steel, then clad it first with scrap wood, then with plastic. The real challenge was constructing a flexible representation of the complexity of the dragonfly’s wings. In the end I achieved it with tent poles salvaged from a festival, beer lines from a local pub and cut plastic from old bread trays. The finished sculpture is not based on any particular dragonfly species, but I hope it does manage to capture their exquisite form.”

Glenn’s donation will provide a lasting symbol of sustainability at the Park whose Rangers take its green credentials very seriously.

Katie Davies, Countryside Ranger at Moors Valley said, “We are thrilled that Glenn’s magnificent recycled cyberdragonfly will be installed at the Park in time for National Dragonfly Week which runs from 23 – 31 July and have chosen to put it by the Moors River which provides the perfect habitat for many of the species found at Moors Valley. We regularly record 27 species of dragonfly and damselfly here, more than half the species in the country, so it is fitting that this stunning sculpture has found a home with us here at the Park.”

Park Rangers will be running dragonfly related events as part of Moors Valley’s summer activity programme. For more information on all activities go to www.moors-valley.co.uk or call the Ranger team on 01425 470721.

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Editor’s notes:

A selection of high resolution images can be downloaded from the press images gallery. Build photos and other images are available. Please contact Amanda Walker on 01725 512200.