Resourceful Animals! Our Autumn Windows

Three centuries ago, our business began when a royal footman named William Fortnum repurposed the half-burned candles from Queen Anne's household — but when it comes to reducing, reusing and recycling, nobody does it better than Mother Nature. 

Each handcrafted by a talented artist using waste material generated here at our Piccadilly store, join Fortnum's as we celebrate a selection of ingenious animals from around the world, whose daily work helps to preserve and protect our planet's delicate ecosystems. Or in the case of the ever-so-creative elephants, to keep sunburn at bay…

Read on to find out more about each of our new Autumn season windows, and meet the creators who have transformed humble raw materials into true works of art.

The Dung Beetle

• Made for Fortnum's by by Rod & Amy Holt, from recycled prop materials, including paint chippings, nails, sawdust and mouldings.
• Nature's greatest tidy-uppers, the dung beetle's job is tough, but they're happy to do it — by collecting and moving poop, they disrupt the lifecycle of pesky flies that would otherwise breed in the waste.

"We were delighted to be included in this project, as it presented an ideal opportunity to repurpose materials used in previous Fortnum’s displays and transform them into an entirely new sculpture.

"We incorporated decorative mouldings that have featured in a variety of installations and interior fixtures alongside spare everyday workshop resources such as timber, nails and screws. The core beetle forms were hand-sculpted out of foam that was salvaged from old props by our talented colleague, Kim Harrison, while the central sphere utilised the accumulated sawdust, fragments and debris gathered from the studio."

Amy Holt, artist and Fortnum's prop-maker

The Bowerbirds

• Made for Fortnum's by Billie Achilleos, from marked and dented biscuit tins and tea caddies.

• Incredibly brainy and wonderfully creative, bowerbirds keep their ecosystems tidy by incorporating natural and man-made items into their 'bower' structures, which they build to impress potential mates.

"[My background is] in creating animal sculptures out of unusual materials for prestigious clients, [and] it's always an honour to work for such a renowned brand as Fortnum & Mason.

"I know from experience that Fortnum's have a real respect for the artists they commission, and that they trust the artist to run with their ideas, and that makes this project is a rare pleasure."

Billie Achilleos, artist

The Vulture

• Made for Fortnum's by Paul Badham, using scrap metal left over from our upcoming Atrium project.

• Expert scavengers with incredible senses of smell and vision, vultures are famous for finding and removing animal carcasses from their habitats — helping to reduce the risk of disease spread in the process.

"My work celebrates the beauty of transformation, turning discarded metals into sculptural forms that blend the industrial with the organic. For this commission, I selected a vulture as my subject: an often misunderstood creature that embodies sustainability, resourcefulness, and regeneration. Like the bird itself, I find value in the overlooked, sourcing materials from local metal recycling centres and reimagining them into striking works of art.

"To exhibit in Fortnum's windows is an extraordinary moment. It feels like a celebration of the creative path I’ve forged proof that even from scrap, something memorable can emerge."

Paul Badham, artist and founder of Metal Vision Ltd.

The Octopus

• Made for Fortnum's by Michelle Reader, using waste from our restaurants, such as seafood shells and wine corks.

• Excellent problem-solvers, octopuses make the most of their surroundings in many ways — using their habitat as camouflage against predators and using natural waste, like discarded coconut shells, as shelter.

"I was really excited to hear about the concept for the Fortnum & Mason window displays: a focus on resourcefulness and sustainability is very much needed in today’s world.

"To present a series of sculptures by different artists  that forefront reuse and a thoughtfulness around materials, and to do it in a prestigious central London location, is a great thing — and to combine this with the playfulness and fascination with wildlife which characterise my own work was the perfect brief for me."

Michelle Reader, artist

The Hyena

• Made for Fortnum's by Barbara Franc, using old Fortnum's staff uniforms, damaged Bags for Life, and sample tea towels.

• Famously zealous cleaners of animal remains and other debris that might otherwise clutter up the ecosystem and spread disease, no leftover is too troublesome to digest for the humble hyena.

"Sculpture is an art form of constant problem solving, that is what I find challenging and is the most rewarding part of being an artist. I’ve been sculpting animal forms full-time for over 35 years now: they fascinate me and fire my imagination with their diversity.

"It is an honour to work for such an iconic store as Fortnum's, and the recycling theme and the sculpting of a life-size Hyena is a gift to me: I was immediately captivated by the idea, [and] it has brought several new challenges in adapting my techniques and using new ones to make a textile animal from scratch to this scale."

Barbara Franc, artist

The Elephant

• Made for Fortnum's by David Farrer, using old Fortnum's Christmas brochures, marketing collateral and in-store signs.

• While their soil-enriching dung is a natural seed disperser, there's no greater proof of an elephant's natural cleverness than the homemade sunblock which they make from a blend of dirt and hay.

"Every time I visit Africa I leave a little bit of my dreaming self behind in the red dusty landscape. The experience of communing with animals we endeavour to replicate, within their own ecosystems, is a revelation — [and] when it comes to sculpting animal form, there is no substitute for being there, first-hand, for complete sensory immersion.

"I hope that the elephant will be something that simply can't be ignored, and will bring people to the window. It is always a lovely thing to be chosen [to create new work], and to be asked by such an iconic British brand as Fortnum & Mason makes it even more exciting." 

David Farrer, artist

The Hermit Crab

• Made for Fortnum's by Josh Gluckstein, using cardboard packing boxes, recycled from our Piccadilly basement.

• Clever and sociable critters known to scavenge for their food, hermit crabs are the natural world's most-resourceful homemakers. If shells are scarce, they'll repurpose discarded materials into makeshift shells.

"My work highlights the beauty and vulnerability of the animals I create, and sustainable, zero-waste processes are central to my practice — so to be working with such an iconic British brand, on a project that champions recycling and creativity, feels like the perfect fit.

"I've actually wanted to make a hermit crab for a little while, so it's wonderful that Fortnum's have presented me with the opportunity. I hope it inspires visitors to experiment with materials and to embark on their own sustainable projects."

Josh Gluckstein, artist