South Staffordshire College mask-maker revealed

Cannock performing artist Anthony Webster has an honours degree in English Literature and has been working for South Staffordshire College, based at the Progress Centre of Cannock Campus for just over a year. Now his creative talents have been fully "unmasked" as he prepares four theatrical masks in the Florentine style for a drama performance in this year's Lichfield Festival Market.Anthony's passion for mask making was stirred on a visit to Florence in 2008 when he "stumbled across" a shop with faces of every conceivable colour, shape and expression. So inspired was he that he returned to the city later that year and undertook an intensive mask-making course at the workshop of Professor Agostino Dessi, who has achieved world-wide recognition in this field.

Returning to the UK, Anthony found that with care and some experimentation he could create masks using methods and materials that were true to the traditions of the art. One of his favourite series of masks features characters from Shakespeare and is no doubt due to his interest in English Literature. Another, entitled "Fortnight Abroad" was exhibited in the 2009 Museum of Cannock Chase Open Art event. In preparation for the Lichfield Festival Market event Anthony is currently crafting four full-face performance masks featuring animal faces, which will be used in a 15-minute dramatic piece that he has written himself.

Anthony explains the fascination that masks hold for him. "I find masks a remarkable medium which appears in many cultures around the globe. They serve to entertain; they support religious practices and even become items of commerce. Like the written word, the value of a mask is
in its ability to share expression with others. If a mask can do that, you have a good "face" to work with".