- Keith Tyssen, 90, has been trimming the hedge into a naked woman since 2005
A retired art teacher has been trimming a hedge into the shape of a naked lady outside his home for almost 20 years.
In 2005, 90-year-old retiree Keith Tyssen decided to indulge his love of sculpture by transforming the hedge in front of his house into a naked woman.
The divorced father of four named her Gloria and said people often stop and take photos of the 5ft-tall reclining figure as they pass his Sheffield home.
He revealed that drunk people climbed on top of the statue to touch it, some even pretending to have sex with the tree.
He said, ‘I’m 90 now, but I’m still pretty healthy, so I’ll continue to support her.’
Retiree Keith Tyssen, 90, (pictured) turned his front yard hedge into a naked woman
The pensioner called her Gloria and said people stop and take photos of the figure as they pass his home in Sheffield.
Mr. Tyssen has been shaping and pruning Gloria outside his home for many years
‘She’s not going anywhere. She’s just sitting there on my wall.
‘The shape is not easy to make, so when I get compliments, it’s very nice to hear.
“People smile when they see Gloria and I like that.”
Mr Tyssen explained that he did not intend to create a naked lady when he transformed his hedge into a slightly larger than life lady.
It took shape during his time as an art student, where he took lessons in figure drawing and subsequently became a teacher.
He said: ‘I started out making a figure of a monster banging its head against a lamppost at the end of my garden. It later developed into a monster defending a virgin.
‘She developed slowly over two to three years – it was actually quite fun.
‘The lady came out of my love for visual inventiveness. It’s just something creative that I like to experiment with.’
Mr. Tyssen explained that he had not planned on a naked lady when he began manipulating his hedge into a slightly larger than life-size lady
Mr Tyssen said drunken people climbed onto the statue to fondle it, with some even pretending to have sex with the tree.
The statue is even bigger than the pensioner himself, with several people climbing on the tree and pretending to have sex with it
Mr. Tyssen has retained Gloria to encourage street art
Over the years, Mr. Tyssen woke up several times to find drunk people mounting Gloria and pretending to have sex with her for the photos.
It would irritate Mr. Tyssen, because it would damage her figure. Fortunately, he hasn’t had any unwanted visitors for a while.
Mr. Tyssen maintained Gloria to encourage street art.
He said: ‘As a society we would benefit from more public art that is beautiful, thoughtful and kind.
It doesn’t have to be hilarious, but thoughtful, gentle humor is good.
“People smile when they see Gloria. They don’t immediately start laughing out loud, but they smile softly. I like to see that humor on people’s faces.
‘I like being responsible for keeping the hedge nice. I like being creative.’
