News Dinosaur at Collyer’s! 04.05.2023

Gifted artist Ceri Pennington, currently working as a library assistant and curriculum support officer at Collyer’s, has kindly donated a cast of her sculpture of a Velociraptor, a small dinosaur that lived around 70 million years ago, to the college’s Geology department.   

 Head of Geology and Assistant Director of Faculty Dr Ian Carr explained: “Ceri was an outstanding Geology A Level student between 2016 and 2018, and she is also an incredibly talented artist. In 2016 she won a national ‘Rockwatch’ prize for her sculpture of a Velociraptor. One side has the skull, and the other is Ceri’s interpretation of what the reptile’s head would have looked like in life.

 “Ceri has kindly donated a cast of her sculpture to the geology department, which the students absolutely love!”

Following Collyer’s, Ceri studied a degree in Archaeology at Durham University and a Masters at Oxford University. She has also recreated the skull of Homo Heidelbergensis, an extinct human species, for Arundel Museum and is still actively pursuing her interest in Archaeology.

Ceri said: “I love bringing the fossils to life, and imagining what the living breathing animal would have been like!”

 Dr Carr added: ‘What an amazing piece of artwork to be given! It is wonderful to combine Ceri’s artistic talents with her love of Geology. This will inspire future generations of both Earth Scientists and artists!