PROCESS

I am sometimes asked if I have a favourite print, and my mind often returns to this particular work that I made during the very unusual year of 2020.   Restricted in how far we could travel, I began to truly notice the landscape around me. My attention shifted to the smaller details; I became acutely aware of every tree and plant along my morning walk. One in particular captivated me - a solitary tree growing in the field just beyond my home. This tree was remarkable in the f

Paper choice is an important consideration when creating an original print as it is integral to the final piece. The hard work has been done to carefully craft the blocks or plates that hold the inked image, but it is the interaction between the ink and the paper under pressure that ultimately finishes the work. Paper holds enormous potential to enhance the work, or, in some cases, inform and contribute to the meaning of the work. For example, I recently took part in an arts

I have decided to experiment with making my own ink, with a view to create an ink that is ‘fugitive’, meaning quick to fade. You could think of it as a kind of 'disappearing' ink, although the intention is for the change to occur gradually over months or years, not instantly. This is, of course, the opposite of what most people seek in an ink, where maximum lightfastness is usually the goal. For me, though, the fading nature of the ink is synonymous with the concepts of ephe

I am thrilled to be learning stone lithography as part of my MA at Aberystwyth University. I had attended a two-day workshop some time ago, here at the school of art, and although I had enjoyed it, I had dismissed it as a process too complicated and reliant on having excellent drawing skills for me to incorporate into my practice.   However, what I do remember really liking about lithography were the patterns made by the washes of tusche on the stone. Tusche is greasy drawing

As a member of Aberystwyth Printmakers, I was invited to take part in an exciting new art, science and humanities collaborative project with the theme of the seashore, focused on the local area of coastline in Mid Wales. The project would be run and organised by Aberystwyth Printmakers in partnership with the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS), The University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies, and the University of Lincoln.  

Occasionally, I am asked if I sell ‘originals’ as well as ‘prints’, and it’s a fair question, if you are just discovering the varied world of printmaking, you would be forgiven for thinking that a ‘print’ is merely a reproduction of an original work. Many artists working in other 2D media, such as drawing or painting, sell high-quality digitally scanned and printed copies of the original piece, these are called giclée prints and are a good way for artists to continue to gener

If you drive along the coastal road from Llanon to Aberarth at low tide, you may glimpse several large mysterious stone shapes along the shoreline. Having lived in the area all my life, I have always been aware of these structures, and, at some point, I learnt they were medieval fish traps, once owned by the monks of Strata Florida Abbey. The traps worked by channelling fish into stone pools; as the tide receded, the water was released through sluice gates and the fish were t