These highly unique sculptures were created by Gordon Parnell (over a decade) using his own crafting techniques–combining the fluid creativity of paper and the flawless beauty of mud.
Thirty-Five Texada Island Sculptures
Making Paper And Mud sculptures
Sea Shell (beach debris) Sculptures
The Journey from Sea Shells To Paper and Mud
Shelter Point Sculpture Parade 2026
Confused? I must confess in my world there is not much difference between arms, wings and leaves or even species. If there is one thing these sculptures share it would be they each catch A Moment In Time, each piece a story with four sides.
Here are the names and descriptions of the sculptures in the parade-in case you haven’t made up your own mind.
El Jeffe (the boss) sculpture (2020)
Essence: Inspired by a tuna fish bone, with a large pine knot posing as a golden horn.
Style: Hollow, chicken wire frame
Scorpion sculpture (2018)
Essence: The warning posture of a scorpion, with the horns of a bull atop a lovely tear-drop vase.
Style: Hollow, chicken wire frame
Bird Girl sculpture (2025)
Essence: Stand tall, never give up. My homage to the Palestinians in the face of a genocide.
Styles: Solid body, bendy paper
Long Ballerina sculpture (2026)
Essence: My take on the beauty of ballet, inspired by a line drawing by Pablo Picasso.
Style: Bendy paper
Flipped Ballerina sculpture (2026)
Essence: Another version of a ballerina–looking like maybe an exotic bone-like creature.
Style: Bendy paper, solid
Blue Curl Sculpture (2026)
Essence: Using just four pieces of paper (planes), demonstrate negative space–and the magic of shadow and light reflection. Plus the sculpture rocks like a rocking chair.
Style: Bendy paper
Three Trees sculpture (2025)
Essence: My homage to our local mother stumps and trees. The mother tree long gone, three trees compete for light atop the forest canopy.
Style: Bendy paper, hollow
Fish & Cactus sculpture (2023)
Essence: All about partly hiding the tuna fish bone and cactus wood at the center of five leaf-like towers–forcing the viewer to move about to see it all.
Style: Bendy paper
Standing Bear sculpture (2025)
Essence: A caricature of a vigilant bear, magically balanced on its tippy toes.
Style: Solid
Flower Girl Sculpture (2016)
Essence: Somewhere between a tongue and a pair of legs its hard not to walk round this beauty to see which view you have. It originally had flower petals where the disk separates the sculpture from the base, hence the name.
Style: Hollow, Chicken wire frame.
Paper Ballet 