AN ambitious artist and former smoker who has been collecting cigarette packets for nearly 20 years wants to create a large thought-provoking sculpture.

Grant Bustin, 42, who lives in Clacton, was first attracted to art after seeing how artistic expression could help him say the same thing, but in lots of different ways.

Back in 2009, following a move from London five years before, the talented artist decided to quit smoking, after it started “knocking my health pretty badly”.

Shortly after kicking the habit, and having collected cigarette packets since his move from the city, Mr Bustin decided to put his horde to good use.

Inspired by cigarettes’ potential to kill, Mr Bustin set about producing a reflective art piece which would depict historic hanging gallows.

The sculpture would also be made out of 20,000 cigarette packets to depict the average amount of packets a smoker goes through in a lifetime.

“I have been saving cigarette packets since when they had no warning stickers on them, so, as you can imagine, the design has changed a lot,” he said.

“I always used to like holding the boxes and playing with them, then I had a lightning bolt moment to create something with them.

“But, over the years, I would just put the packets in the loft, but then two years ago I decided to start the project up again.”

So far, Mr Bustin has managed to stash away 2,000 cigarette packets, but he needs ten times that for his sculpture to harness the stature he desires.

He is also on the hunt for tobacco pouches, which will be manipulated into the gallows’ rope and hold a mirror to create the self-reflection element.

The former restaurant manager, who currently works as a supermarket cleaner, is now calling on the community to help him materialise his artwork.

“I want to have 20,000 packets before I actually make the sculpture but I quit years ago – the image that I was slowly killing myself was a motivation,” he said. “So, I would love people to collect cigarette packets for me because that would be a great help.”

“All people have to do is save up their cigarette packets and then when they are tired of looking at them, I will go and collect them.”

Contact Mr Bustin by emailing grantbustin@gmail.com.