One of Australia's pre-eminent, rare marble sculptors, Jane Valentine lives in Sydney and works on the other side of the world, mainly in the northern Italian village of Pietrasanta, situated at the base of the Carrarra Mountains, and famously, where Michelangelo once lived and sourced his marble.

On occasions, she also works in Xiamen, southeast of China, as well as Cairo, Egypt; as a carver Valentine finds all three places inspiring. Carving is one of the earliest art forms of sculpture, and one which still carries the imprint of the past, with artisans' knowledge being passed down through the centuries to each successive generation. Yet while Valentine’s practice honours traditional methods, she is very much a 21st century practitioner and her marble forms contain both classical simplicity and purity of form.

When talking about her practice, Valentine notes “With marble you have a sense of immortality. To get to the essence, that’s essentially what I’m trying to do…”. During her search for the ‘right’ block of marble, she suggests it is preferable to venture out when “it’s just been raining and there’s early morning light,” and interestingly, she observes “You have to tap it – when you tap marble, it sings, so you’re looking for the appropriate pitch.”

Jane Valentine is represented in a number of corporate collections including the Point Leo Estate, Gandel Collection, Morgan Stanley Chifley Tower, Sydney, Retail Employers Superannuation Trust, Melbourne and the Changchun International Sculpture Park, China

View Jane Valentine’s works at the Point Leo Estate Sculpture Park