My Working Process
I create textiles and prints to capture a sense of place and invite an immersion into the wild beauty of West Cornwall’s landscape, flora and fauna; with its hidden woodlands, sweeping curves of moorland and coastlines where the Atlantic Ocean meets the skies.
Nestled inland from the coast, I work surrounded by meadows and woodlands. I gain a deep sense of place by revisiting the same locations to draw and paint from direct observation, exploring the colours and fauna as they change with the seasons and time of day.
Creating My Limited Edition Prints...
Back in my studio I create detailed botanical studies of the plants I’ve collected. Gradually I develop the compositions and colours for my limited edition prints, often layering the minutia of nature within larger landscapes.
Once I am happy with the image I can start to work with the printmaking process. I often enjoy combining printmaking processes such as lino printing and etching with mono-printing. After hours spent carefully creating a printing plate or carving a lino block, one of the most exciting moments is seeing the first print emerge from the press.
Creating my textile prints...
My working process always begins with drawing from direct observation in my sketchbook, I often develop these sketches into larger watercolour compositions, which helps me plan how to translate my artwork into my prints.
The imagery for my printed textiles is created by combining watercolour paintings and line drawings with traditional printmaking processes such as mono-printing, lino print and drypoint etching, which I then digitally print onto the fabric.
For example, the Alium textile collection was created by blending hand drawn illustrations with mono-printing. The monoprints were created by cutting intricate paper stencils. I applied ink was to the printing plate in an expressive, painterly manner, as a contrast to the smooth clean lines created by the paper stencils. Each print evolved through the application of many layers of ink, capturing mark-making and imprints from previous layers. It was a very experimental process, I never quite knew how each print would develop.
Each textile piece within my collections is carefully handmade to last, with much attention to detail, my design philosophy is to create exquisite textiles to cherish.
