Limited Edition Prints

I create limited edition lino prints that explore the wild beauty of West Cornwall, bringing together larger landscape forms with intricate details of plants, birds and other wildlife to capture a sense of place. My prints develop from drawings, watercolours and botanical studies made from direct observation. Once I have developed the composition, I translate the imagery into layers of lino.

Creating a lino print is a focused and immersive process. I use multiple carved lino blocks, each contributing a separate layer of colour. A key part of the process is deciding where to simplify forms and where to retain detail and mark-making. While my drawings and watercolours can encompass an almost infinite range of colour, lino printing requires more deliberate choices and a limited palette. Prints are often built from four or five translucent layers, with overlapping colours creating new tones and subtle variations. Each print is made by hand using multiple blocks and layers of ink. Careful registration, precisely aligning each layer as it is printed, ensures that the colours and details come together accurately as the image develops. The process is slow and considered. Each layer brings new decisions and sometimes unexpected results, making the finished print a combination of careful planning and moments of apprehension and joy when the first proof emerges. Sometimes the colours work straight away; at other times they need reworking to achieve the right balance.

I aim to combine the life, vitality, flow and immediacy of drawing from direct observation in nature with the slow, considered process of lino printing. The time and attention required to develop each image echoes the way we can experience nature when we slow down: noticing detail, making connections and becoming absorbed in what is around us. I hope this approach allows me to create imagery that conveys a sense of place and invites the viewer to pause, look closely and become immersed in the natural world.