Richard Scott at Ballymaloe: Sculpting a business in the art world 

With his annual sales exhibition under way in East Cork featuring work by some of Ireland's top sculptors, Scott explains how he started out as a vet, but ended up as an art dealer 

Richard Scott with artist Ester Barrett with one of her sculptures titled Gannet Plunge at Ballymaloe House Hotel. Picture: Darragh Kane

Birds and animals feature prominently at the Richard Scott Sculpture Gallery’s annual showcase in the grounds of Ballymaloe House in Shanagarry, East Cork. This is the event’s ninth year, and among the 47 pieces by 27 artists are Ester Barrett’s spectacular Gannet Plunge and Peter Killeen’s Sakra Hare, both cast in bronze, as well as Michael Quane’s Horse Rider and Quadruped, carved from Kilkenny limestone.

Their inclusion is hardly surprising; curator Richard Scott is a former veterinarian whose passion for art eventually won out over his keenness for working with animals.