Keith Rand RSA 1956-2013

Keith Rand was born in Rinteln, Germany and entered Woodroffe School in Dorset as a boarder at the age of 13. On leaving he trained as a cartographic surveyor for Ordnance Survey in Southampton before enrolling at the Winchester School of Art, graduating in 1982 with first class honours.

Following his period Winchester, Keith joined the team at the Scottish Sculpture Workshop in Lumsden, working as a part-time technician. During this period he taught in the sculpture department at Gray's School of Art in Aberdeen and was visiting lecturer at Glasgow School of Art and Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, Dundee. 

Working mainly in wood, Keith used native timbers which reflected his interest in environmental matters. Many of his works are sited rurally across the UK including the work Segmented Sitka sited in the forest at Tyrebagger, Aberdeenshire. 

In 1996 he became sculptor in residence to Cannington Agricultural College in Somerset and created a series of landscape structures for the River Parrett Trail. During a visit to Japan in 1998, he developed his original form motif - a signature of his work to follow. Upon returning, he established a studio at Clarendon Park in Salisbury where, in 1999, his work featured in a major exhibition of British sculpture at Salisbury Cathedral. 

The original form motif was prevalent in his later works and included one sculpture over four metres high which was subsequently acquired for Canary Wharf. This period led to a relationship with the Steven Lacey Gallery who represented him with his first solo exhibition in London. He was later represented by John Martin Gallery. 

In 2002, Keith was invited to develop a concept carving Ridgeline for Sculpture at Goodwood and this work was subsequently exhibit at the Guggenheim in Venice. 

His work was acquired for major collections in the UK, Japan and Europe, and he was frequently awarded commissions for large site-specific works. Recent sculpture commissions include The Grain for Sainsbury's in Edinburgh and By The Downs for ArtCare at Salisbury District Hospital. 

In recognition of his contribution to contemporary sculpture in Scotland, he was made an Associate of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1996 and became a Royal Scottish Academician 2005 more recently, he was elected a member of the Royal British Society of Sculpture.

RSA Obituary, transcribed from the 2014 RSA Annual Exhibition Catalogue