Craftsman Paul
Baker, who made an egg, says in terms of boat building there's 'difficult,
very difficult, and then theirs the Egg Shape' as book club put it made for space
This giant floating egg on the River Beaulieu
could well be Hampshire's quirkiest living space. It may look like it
comes straight from the set of a low-budget science fiction movie, but the
giant wooden pod cost £40,000 to build and will in fact be the home and
work-space of artist Stephen Turner, 58, for the next year. The 40ft
self-sustaining structure, which is registered as a boat, floats up and down
with the tide and is designed to have minimal environmental impact. Stephen
hopes to highlight climate change while living there. Meet the man who lives - and works - in an
egg This giant floating wooden pod is artist's studio and home.
The British artist Stephen Turner, 58, will live
and work inside £40,000 40ft Exbury Egg
for a year. Structure took six
months to build and features in George Clarke's Amazing Spaces on Channel 4 Stephen hopes to highlight climate
change, study local wildlife and host Q&A sessions there The Exmoor
Egg is artist Stephen Turner's home and work-space for the next year. Turner
will spend 12 months experiencing nature while staying on board and working in
the Exbury Egg. It features in the second series of Channel 4 documentary George
Clarke's Amazing Spaces, which premiered on Thursday.


My artwork is very
much about nature and natural processes and the relationship we have with
nature,' says Turner. Architect Wendy Perring and project manager Phil Smith
faced the task of translating Turner's values into the practical space.They showed architect and presenter George Clarke the miniature plastic
prototype, demonstrating how the two halves are joined together. A door reveals
an open-plan living space with kitchen and desk area. Each half of the egg is
made of two wooden skins with a membrane in between to make it watertight. It
is wider at rear allowing room for two storage cupboards either side, and a
very simple bathroom.
Stephen Turner hired a boat builder Paul Baker to
construct his living space - a feat Baker describes as 'very difficult' Both
presenter and architect George Clarke and boat builder Paul Baker were
astonished at how spacious the egg feels once you're inside.It
took boat builder Paul Baker six months to build the space. He used 8km of
cedar to complete it and says trying to get wood to bend round a sphere
template was difficult. Every one of the hundreds of planks was fitted by hand.
After the first layer was complete, Baker added waterproof Epoxy Glass matting
before adding the second layer of wood. Baker says in terms of boat building
there's 'difficult, very difficult, and then the Egg'.A prototype demonstrates
how the two halves are joined together, and a door reveals an open-plan living
space with kitchen and desk area.

Stephen Turner’s
work often involves spending long periods in odd abandoned places, noting
changes in the complex relationship between human-made and natural
environments. His latest project will enable him to have a space to live
in whilst he studies the life of the creek.
His latest venture is part of a
project to explore the nature of the landscape and the meaning of place, amidst
environmental changes. He is sharing his work on a blog and with local
schoolchildren and once he has finished his residency, his work will go on
display. Paul Baker used 8km of cedar to complete it and says trying to get
wood to bend round a sphere template was difficult. Every one of the hundreds of
planks was fitted by hand. After the first layer was complete, Baker added
waterproof Epoxy Glass matting before adding the second layer of wood. The
has been funded by the Arts Council and private sponsors. He approached Phil
Smith from SPUD (Space, Place-making and Urban Design) who gathered a team of
architects and engineers to design the structure. Smith has said he may
eventually tour the egg to places like the Tate Modern, and is potentially
interested in using it for other functions after Stephen Turner's tenancy there
ends in June 2014.George Clarke's
Amazing Spaces is on Channel 4, Thursdays at 8pm.

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