Noel says: “Her practice and electric energy had everyone hooked – and noisily hammering away at copper – and ever since then I knew she was a star in the making.

“Both Sadie and her work shine bright. I love that her work is always evolving through reinvention and experimentation. Over the years she has created stunning wearable copper sculptures, collaborated with Sophia and Ai-Da the robot, had work selected for the RA Summer Exhibition and is now exploring our relationship to water and swimming in the Black community.”

Specialising in copper metal, Clayton fuses spirituality and technology in her work. (Copper is a conductor of spirituality that repels negativity).

Clayton says: “I started my creative journey in fashion design, fusing fashion art and tech, then stepped over into the art world a few years ago, where I found my purpose in life… to uplift and rejuvenate a community through my copper sculptures.

“It all stemmed from when I was studying fashion at Kingston University – you never saw copper. It was always gold, brass or silver, so I began creating copper metal sculptures for the body. My muse was Grace Jones and I made sculptural shapes to empower women. I had a brand for a few years showcasing at the RA, M&C Saatchi during London Fashion Week, fusing fashion, art and tech with holograms and Ai, dressing Sophia the robot. Then a few years ago I was at Paris Fashion Week, left with 12 orders and only one came through, that’s when I pivoted to the art world. My first commission within three months was the copper Christmas tree for The Ivy and I was asked to go on BBC Radio 4 ‘Only Artists’ where Ron Arad and myself unpacked multidisciplinary art – I never looked back. If you took one of my sculptures and hung it from the ceiling, it could be a light fitting, place it in a room, it could be a prototype for a coffee table – my canvas was no longer the body, but the universe.”

Clayton was also selected to represent the north of England in the Landmark TV series on Sky Arts; has recently been a judge on CBBC’s Britain’s Best Young Artist; appeared in the Channel 4 documentary Hair Power: Me and My Afro, talking about how hair shapes the Black British experience; and was commissioned by Sky Arts to create a 14-foot permanent public sculpture that now resides in Grizedale forest in the Lake District.

Noel adds: “It’s impossible to categorise Sadie’s work – she makes her own rules and consistently breaks new ground. She’s an artist, an innovator, an inventor, a teacher – with an electric presence – and is the best dressed guest everywhere!”