116 SIDELINES OCTOBER 2012
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
You began this extraordinary career at the age of 21.
People with such an immense and unique talent as yourself
have normally spent some time in bit of a career wilderness.
What was yours?
I don’t know if you could call my job history a wilderness; but I
had a few day jobs after I left school, which in turn lead me to my
work now. I left school after ‘A’ levels, chose not to go to University
and went and got a ‘Real’ job. I worked as a delivery driver, in a
bar, a builders yard and then for an audiovisual company. That
was fne for a year or so then I got fed up working for someone
else. So I decided that the bigger picture was for me to work for
myself and I would therefore then be the person to get the most
out of it.
And what was the thought process that led you to think
“Aha, I know, I will sculpt with shoes.”
I always enjoyed welding and fabricating and with my workshop
being on the livery yard there was an abundance of horseshoes.
For my parents 25th wedding anniversary my twin brother and I
decided to make a horse for them. It was something that we had
always talked about doing. People seeing the horse displayed on
the yard then started to ask what else we could make. The rest
is history.
Do you ride yourself? Your work shows such an
understanding of themovement and anatomy of the horse that
there must be a deeply entrenched love of them somewhere
in your background.
A live dachshund looks a little surprised to see his
horseshoe counterpart
After the Olympic cross-country course was dismantled,
Tom’s Olympic horses stood proudly in front of the
Queen’s house.
I have never ridden myself but have been brought up around
horses. I have an identical twin brother who used to compete in
Three Day Eventing to a high standard so I was always around
horses. I am very lucky with the location of my studio in the way
that I can always go and look at a variety of horses from different
angles to help with the anatomy of my work.
How would your best friend or family members describe
you? (My best friend is a dog called Oscar so there is not an
awful lot I could say to this in your shoes - no pun intended.)
My friends would describeme as very work orientated, especially
since I have worked for most of my week off here in Croatia. I am
also very easy going but have my eyes set on my career goals.
Photos: All photos courtesy of Tom Hill
About the Writer: Maria Wynne, Sidelines’ UK writer, has spent her entire life
with horses and her family background is steeped in them. She says, “I have been
on both sides of the fence as it were. As a competitor and rider and working within
the industry/trade itself. I particularly love writing and observing and have had the
privilege to have met and spent time with some of the most amazing horsemen and
women on the planet and on both sides of the Atlantic. I am the proud (single) Mum
of the most adorable son age 4, who is named after the 2008 Cheltenham Gold
Cup Winner. (Yep, I love racing, too) Two dogs, a Jug called Oscar and a chocolate
dapple miniature dachshund called Daisy. The Offce Manager is a leopard tortoise
called Dr. Gonzo.
”
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