Weyland-Yutani Bulletin would like to introduce Neil Walton, a phenomenal artist & sculptor whose work has been lauded over by our members for over 4 years now. Most notable was his Big Chap homage,(see images following the intervew) a masterclass in sculpture in it’s own right that Giger would have been proud of. He has kindly agreed to an interview with us. This is what he had to say.

Q1. What are your first memories of your extraordinary talent? Was it sparked by something in particular or did gradually surface over time?

A1. My first ever moment of childhood awe was when my mother drew a picture of Darth Vader for me , it took pride of place over my bed for many years , Star wars dominated my childhood , for me and my friends. but we all had that one toy that never appeared under the christmas tree , so plasticene became my means to create what i wished for.

Q2. Obviously your heavily influenced by the great H.R.Giger & Alien. What’s your earliest memory of them & which other artists inspire your art?

A2. My Grandmother was a complete Horror fanatic, hammer house horror was the staple of my weekends…. then we watched Alien together. you know where your fears lie with most horror, it’s primal, but the Derelict scene gave me something i still cannot to this day explain internally, it left a void. as for other Artist’s i admire greatly, Patrick Woodroffe and Ian Miller are but two that fire my imagination.

Q3. What materials did you employ and what were the logistics of recreating the big chap homage?

A3. My Alien sculpt is basically a mannequin conversion with part’s cut away and part’s added, i use anything i can find, salvage and recycle. Once i have the main form, i will sculpt using fibre glass, glues and epoxy putty, finding its flow was probably the hardest thing, as i did not want to copy directly, more looking than working in this respect but it is my favourite piece.

Q4. If someone respected in the film industry asked for one of your original sculptures to be on the big screen. 1. Would you accept? 2. Say they gave you complete creative control, what would be your direction and concept be for the film?

A4 Who wouldnt haha!. That said, it is the chicken and the egg. a script based on a design rather than a design based on a script offers up two directions. i won’t pretend im a writer so i can only offer up small ideas, im a big fan of surreal, cosmic horror and body horror. symbolism is a weightier concept than say a few intelligent spoken lines…. so ill leave this one here if you don’t mind.

Q5. What does your work aim to say? How have these inspirations (Giger etc) been warped to form your body of work?

A5. For me, how things work has always been an attraction, some of the most amazing pieces of art for me have this feeling of being seemingly real yet conveying total fantasy, its a hard blend that i admire.

Q6. At what point do you start a sculpture. Does it form in your head first? Or is it more fluid like stream of consciousness, more tactile and hands on?

A6. I can take an idea from the oddest of things, a passage i have read, a thing somebody has said or an odd object or image. I will play it round in me head for a good few days until the tension gets to great, then just start working. I rarely sketch in advance, prefaring to freeform as i sculpt, surprises are often better than plans and are more rewarding in the end result. that said, i also make lots of mistakes, and often change things after hours of work, but that’s half the fun right?.

“I would also like to say thank you to the crew of WYB. For sharing the love of our Alien universe !!! it’s been a pleasure”

Be sure to join Weyland-Yutani Bulletin on Facebook for more Alien goodness! – Dave