Metal sculptor and Black Country local, Luke Perry, has said that working in the hearing has been ‘tough’ as the UK faces a potential heatwave over the coming days.
From his warehouse in Cradley Heath, Luke creates iconic sculptures with strong meanings, often portraying the struggles of the times and the strengths of the Black Country and West Midlands communities.
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However, it’s not all fun and games as he says the normally hot warehouse is only made hotter by the upcoming heatwave and hot weather.
Talking about working in the metal workshop, the sculptor, said: “I primarily work with steel and clay, which is unfortunate because this warehouse is a hot environment by standard. It’s one of the last maritime chainmakers in the country so it’s naturally quite hot.
“This place is normally about 30C. Obviously, when you’re working you have to put all the heat protection kit on and it just gets even hotter, the clay gets hot and you do kind of start losing the will to live.
“It is really hot in here, especially when the clay is drying up and you’re working with the steel, but it’s great.”
Despite the high heat, Luke continues to work on his impressive sculptures, which include the Dudley Zoo and Castle orangutan, Lions of the Great War and the NHS dandelion.
With potential heat waves incoming and temperatures predicted to rise to around 30C, Luke will continue to work on his many upcoming projects.