Hello, I’m Sophie Sweeney, the artist behind PHIEELING. PHIEELING was born three years ago whilst I was studying at the University of Sunderland for my degree in Glass and Ceramics. I enjoy creating work that explores feelings of being an ‘outsider’ and often create sculptures that focus on the absurdities of social behaviour and our desire to connect with the world around us. Throughout my time at university I have developed a specialism in hand-built ceramic sculpture to create my bold and playful sculptural forms.

My sculptures are driven by a strong love for drawing, and I have been lucky to experiment and develop my practice throughout university where I have been a Mike Davies Scholar, Global Challenges scholar, Robson Art and Design scholar and sponsored to participate in drawing courses in London at the Royal Drawing School and even travel to Berlin for the Berlin Biennale for contemporary art.

My current focus is to continue to grow my practice through artist residencies, courses and mentorship, whilst developing a range of fun sculptural forms that are available for purchase. I hope to use PHIEELING as a project to continue to develop my work and through my monthly newsletter I aim to reach audiences with updates and insight into my current creative focuses.