A conversation about women in conservation

Nina Bilbey is an award-winning sculptor who has been stone carving and teaching for most of her adult life. But success has been hard-won. In the Spring issue of SPAB Magazine she describes the the ups and downs she experienced.

The (very recent) bad old days

'After the completion of my formal masonry training in 2000, I gained employment at a cathedral run by a commercial firm. At my interview I was told that even though I hads graduated top of the class and was awarded ‘best student’, I would be paid £1.75 an hour less than the men, because I couldn’t possibly produce as much work, and women like to chat.'

Boots not made for working

'For many years I could only find protective clothing designed for the catering trade, nothing small enough or designed for cutting stone in the wet. When you arrive at a commercial masonry firm you are issued with the required safety equipment. I was given overalls so big I looked like a circus clown and had to cut half the legs off so I could climb a ladder.'

Bright futures

'The conservation industry attracts the brightest of minds and the most creative people. Women although common on site and as independent experts, are now beginning to take their rightful place at the meetings where important decisions are being made.'

Women in Conservation: a conversation, Tuesday 18 March, 5.30-8pm

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Co-founder of the Abraxas Stone Carving Academy, Nina runs a successful stone carving studio based at the Holkham Estate in Norfolk and co-hosts The Stone Carving and Lettering Takeaway podcast.

Image Copyright Nina Bilbey