Michael Lythgoe

Michael Lythgoe was born in Liverpool in 1950. He served an apprenticeship in engineering with Unilever and, on completion in 1970, he joined the Merchant Navy as a junior engineering officer.

Living and working on the shores of Lake Ontario he was able to pursue his hobby of bird photography spending countless hours observing the birdlife of the region.

On a trip to Cape Cod he purchased an old wooden decoy which sits proudly in his workshop today. This carving inspired Michael to change direction and, upon returning to the U.K. in 1986 with his wife and two children, he embarked on his new career.

His work has evolved into a style and form unique to him. Curvaceous and calming, the eye of the ornithologist and craftsman are clearly visible. Inspired by the early North American decoys Michael's stylised curvilinear representations of wildfowl and waders have now evolved into a style and form collected by many.

From Wrens to Bewicks Swans each sculpture is unique, hewn from blocks of wood using drawknives and spokes haves and then sympathetically painting them using acrylic paint.