The Storyteller, wooden woman statue St John's Town of Dalry
Thoughts from the maker of the The Storyteller statue in St John's Town of Dalry and the Witches of Glenken
The Storyteller: Crafting a Public Sculpture for Waterside Hill, Galloway
"The Storyteller" has now taken up her permanent position on Waterside Hill, just off the summit near St John’s Town of Dalry in Galloway. Following the recent regional and national press coverage, the conversation around the sculpture has evolved from a temporary news item into a much more meaningful local discussion.
Recently, the team behind the Galloway Retold podcast released a dedicated episode discussing the project, its origins, and how the piece interacts with the local landscape. You can watch and listen to their conversation below.
An Image for All Women
The original brief for this project was both simple and profoundly challenging: to create "an appropriate image of woman" and a piece that spoke "for all women."
It would have been straightforward to lean into historical cliché or idealised monuments. Instead, the design represents a deliberate fusion of past and present. She is not a superhero, nor is she a supermodel; she is an honest, grounded representation of a normal woman.
That choice directly informed her physical posture. Rather than a rigid, perfectly symmetrical carving, she was sculpted with a natural human poise—seated slightly off-center and leaning forward gently, and inviting a passerby to sit down on the bench beside her and share a conversation.
A Quiet Memorial to the Accused
The decision to portray her as an ordinary, normal woman carries a profound historical weight. In this region of Scotland, as across the country, hundreds of innocent women suffered horrific abuse and some violent deaths under the ignorant accusation of witchcraft. These were not mythical figures; they were ordinary individuals—healers, herbalists, mothers, and neighbours—who succumbed to a dark chapter of collective panic and cruelty. "The Storyteller" stands as a quiet, dignified memorial to them. She intentionally rejects the caricatures of folklore—there are no pointed hats or theatrical traits here. By presenting her simply as a normal woman, the sculpture grounds that history in reality.During the official installation ceremony on the hill, when this connection to the accused women of Scotland was formally made, there was a palpable surge of passion from the gathered audience. It became entirely clear that the piece has already transcended its role as public art; it has become a long-overdue, physical acknowledgment of a shared historical scar.
Nine Months in the Workshop.
Carving a life-size figurative sculpture is an intensive, long-form process. This project represented nine months of continuous daily work at my Biosphere-certified workshop in Ayrshire.
Because the sculpture is designed to be interactive, the details had to stand up to close human contact as well as distant viewing. Different cuts and species of timber were carefully selected and woven together to form her hair, ensuring it features distinct textures that will catch the light. From the subtle expression in her eyes to the small detail of her painted toes, every element was considered to give her character without creating a sense of historical detachment.
Throughout the nine-month build, maintaining a transparent workflow with the client was essential. Weekly progress videos sent directly from the bench ensured the project remained a collaborative journey from the first rough cuts to the final chisel strokes.
Engineering for the Elements
In the podcast, the project team quite pragmatically manage public expectations regarding the lifespan of outdoor timber on such an exposed, hostile hill summit, mentioning a conservative two-year window. From a structural perspective, however, the engineering tells a more durable story. While the harsh Galloway elements will certainly weather her appearance over time, the figure has been deeply engineered from premium Scottish Larch. Famed for its high natural resin content and inherent resistance to rot, this timber—combined with robust, heavy-duty structural joinery—is well-equipped to withstand high-altitude winds and I hope she remain a feature of the hillside for the next 10 to 20 years.
As she ages, the different species of timber in her hair and form will silver and weather at varying rates. Rather than deteriorating, the sculpture will slowly change character, allowing the landscape to claim her naturally.
A Quiet Invitation
Whether you are walking the Southern Upland Way and simply looking for a place to eat a sandwich, or you are visiting Waterside Hill specifically to see her, "The Storyteller" is left intentionally unnamed to allow visitors to form their own connection with her.
The same structural principles, material integrity, and hand-carved details required for a major public installation like this inform everything that leaves my workshop—right down to private figurative memorials and smaller domestic commissions. The commitment to local timber and understated character remains exactly the same.
Community Reflections
Following the installation on Waterside Hill, Jenna Cains of the Dalry Community Council shared her reflections on the journey of bringing this project to life:
"We worked with Robert on a large, long duration project as representatives of a Community Council. It was a real journey, from original idea to completion, and Robert was excellent throughout. Skilled, supportive and understanding of our vision, we had a real feeling of doing this together. Robert became a friend and over time the sculpture became a presence in our lives and now, in our community. Thank you Robert for making our idea a reality."
