Sculptures

Mixed media (cast glass, bespoke joinery, optical fibre and light)

Acrylic diffuser, powder coated mild steel, optical fibre, warm white LED light source.

Mixed media (diffuser, optical fibre, steel and light)

Reclaimed treated timber sleeper, acrylic, silver anodised aluminium, optical fibre,  light source

Lego, acrylic diffuser, powder coated mild steel, optical fibre, colour changing LED light source.

MDF, plaster, musical box mechnism, optical fiber, LED light source

Flocked timber frame, opal acrylic sheet, 2-way acrylic mirror, Duratrans image, battery flash system

Optical fiber, acrylic, powder coated mild steel, brass, LED light source

Ignited by a childhood reading of 2001 a Space Odyssey (Arthur C. Clarke), Thank You for a Very Enjoyable Game is a visual abstraction of a chess game between the space ship supercomputer HAL 9000 and the astronaut Dr. Frank Poole.

30 chess boards inlaid with colored Formica, are positioned in a linear formation tracking the moves made in the chess game. A discrete audio soundtrack chimes (like a ‘chess clock’ timer) signifying a move has been made by a player. Each square has a designated audio note (the chess board spanning eight octaves) and is derived from Tingsha, the cymbals used in prayer and rituals by Tibetan Buddhist practitioners. The chime was specifically chosen to emphasize the contemplative nature of the game of chess.

Mixed Media (board, Formica)

Dark Star is a variation on a theme. Each iteration of the design concept is visually characterized by a spherical core, with varying number of radiating branches illuminated by optical fibre.

Mixed Media (PEZ, acrylic, optical fibre, light source)

Time is a constant theme in Munro’s work and even more so after a visiting Uluru in central Australia during 2016 and understanding that the notion of time to the Anangu (the indigenous people of the area), was and is very different to our own.

The concept of time appears familiar to us because of repetition. yet every moment is different.

Mixed Media (19th C cast iron clock-face, animation, light source)

Mettabhavana is a conceptual piece conceived by Munro in the late 1990s.

Of the origins of the work Munro says: “During the Easter holiday of 1997 my family and I were invited to stay at a beautiful Oliver Messel beachside home in Barbados. On the first night we arrived I had an unforgettable dream. It was about a building. I could not see where the light came from; it just came softly through the walls. I had a great inner sense of peace and unity; feelings of such clarity, which remain with me today.

The moment I woke, I knew this was a building not just for me but for everyone: a space that could unite people, a space to simply practice Metta Bhavana, nothing more. It was about drawing light back into the world, both literally and spiritually”.

In the months after the dream the ideas and design came naturally to Munro. Although the building is visually complex, the functional side is extremely simple. There’s no electricity, it is lit by sunlight by day and beeswax candles by night. In essence the building would be a light space, a place to practise the compassionate meditation (Mettabhavana) or a simple meditation of the breath. Although this is Buddhist meditation/prayer the building is completely non-denominational, in other words, the building is for everyone.

For now it exists as a concept, but of remains one of the Munro’s life’s ambitions to build the Mettabhavana. An animation of the building and it’s internal space can be seen here and additional images of the concept can be found here.

Huge thanks to James at Augustini Design, James & Mike at Amalgam, Chris at Zushi Design and Seamus at Designworxs who have helped develop this project to this stage.