1.Tell us about yourself. Have you always made art?

I have always loved to draw and paint. Luckily for me, I grew up in a family that have always appreciated creativity from drawing to music to architecture. Therefore, I was absorbed into the art world at a young age. I even remember being in awe at my dad’s watercolour and grandad’s oil paintings that are proudly hung on the walls of my family home. With my work now hanging up on the wall too, it has been become somewhat of a family gallery.

2. How did you get started in printmaking?

I had my introduction into Lino printing at the age of 16 at college and I immediately loved the technicality of the process. Unfortunately, I couldn’t take it much further due to a lack of available facilities. When searching for art universities, I was intrigued to find that LCC had incredible printing equipment and inductions. I was finally able to expand my knowledge of printing into new methods such as screen printing, letterpress, and lithography. Lino is still my favourite print medium, because of the textures it allows me to bring to my work.

3. Who are your biggest influences?

I am heavily influenced by modern artists, such as Andy Warhol, Craig Stephens and Jeff Koons. All of whom are artists that take ordinary commercial objects and transform them into art icons. I am inspired by their ability to shed new light on graphic design that we see daily, such as food labels. I find it a shame that they are often overlooked within the art world. A GCSE art project of mine consisted solely of recreating product labelling and all it’s intricate details.

The use of pop art that has been influenced by the culture of advertisements fascinates me as it is a mirror of the society at that time.

I love commercial illustrations and posters from the likes of vintage London Underground advertisements or attraction posters such as the London Zoo. I have an appreciation for dramatic composition and graphic colours – being minimal is not a talent of mine!

In my artwork, I like to experiment a lot with colours and love to show many combinations of complimentary and contrasting features. I admire the colour palettes of Van Gogh, Gauguin, and Matisse.

I have a huge appreciation for nature and have represented it in some of my artwork over the years. Works I have created recently are designed to embrace the diversity of the flora and fauna that are currently at risk due to the declining environmental situation. I am also inspired by my Brazilian heritage and want to bring awareness to the constantly rising dangers that the wonders of the Amazon face.

4. Where do you make work now that you’ve graduated? What does your current work setup look like?

This year of 2020 has been a challenge for us all so after completing my studies and graduating during lockdown from my home, it is foggy to try and envision the near future and be motivated to create new pieces. However, during these times, optimism is the best way forward. Recently, I have had the chance to return to the LCC relief printing studio and I have found a new drive of energy to continue creating.

I have a desk set up in my living room with all my supplies, from paints to fabric. Here, I can work away surrounded by posters from exhibitions I have been to over the years. However, I find that inspiration can strike at any time of day. I have the Pocket ProCreate app on my phone to make sketches of ideas that come to mind whilst waiting for the next tube to arrive or my coffee order to be ready. Later, when I’m back at my desk I can then work on these concepts more and develop them further by resketching and painting in colour schemes.

For now, I will be putting my efforts into making as much artwork as I can to upload onto my Instagram account or sell on an Esty shop till more job opportunities open up. 

5. Looking back on your time at LCC, what advice would you give to yourself, if you could travel back in time?

Any free time you get, dedicate it to something brand new or something you want to learn more about. There are always areas to explore in printing and in your own process as you constantly absorb inspirations around you. Expand, learn and develop.

Don’t shy away from opportunities to bring more awareness to your work, exhaust the list.

Finally, while I unwillingly graduated during the Covid-19 pandemic, I would definitely say don’t take the university space and facilities for granted.

6. Where can we see more of your work?

I post weekly on my art Instagram account @cm_getscreative where I share the process behind my current projects and then reveal the final pieces.

I also have an online portfolio, which is accessible at https://catiakelleher.myportfolio.com/

This week’s Featured Graduate is Izzy Smithson. You may be thinking, hold on, I’ve seen her in the workshop this year! Izzy graduated from the BA Illustration and Visual Media in 2017, and has been working with us ever since. As a Printmaking Support Technician, she supports students across Printmaking and Screenprinting. She is frequently on duty during our popular Saturday Club sessions, and can often be found elbow-deep in ink, alongside many of our dedicated students.

Her work traverses the boundaries of installation, illustration and printmaking, layering autobiographical, found imagery, and gestural mark making on alternative, and often industrial, surfaces.

Tell us about yourself.  How did you get started in printmaking?

I have always been interested in printmaking but have never really had the time or resources to try it until studying my BA. It was at this point where I was brought up to the printmaking workshops by my tutor at the beginning of my third year. Previously I had been in the studios, but not fully dedicated to this way of working. Since the first day of being introduced, I spent every day for the rest of my third year in the printmaking workshops and have been learning and experimenting ever since.

I am an artist and printmaker from London and love to experiment with every print process and have recently been pushing to combine these with installation. I enjoy how printmaking has multiple layers and processes that can be experimented and challenged.

Who are your biggest influences?

Lubaina Himid & Amy Sillman & Mike Kelly (Educational complex) are my current influences when it comes to my recent work. Through looking at their contextual ideas and experimental ways of making work, I have taken a lot of inspiration from their materiality and focus on narratives.

My grandparents are also some of my biggest influences. Whilst visiting them as children, we would always be occupied by creating art and crafts. They would teach my brothers and I how to draw, paint and collage alongside watching them create their own paintings. Recently I have been creating a project that is based solely around the personal journey to where my grandparents’ house was. I am always interested in the interaction between humans and environments but have been able to use this experience to explore ownership of space, collective memory and journeys of loss.

Where do you make work now?

In 2018, I started my Print MA at the Royal College of Art, where I have been able to access facilities in the printmaking workshops and have a personal studio space to create a lot of work in.

In the current situation, due to COVID-19, I have been working from an office room in my boyfriend’s dads house, trying to create with what I have around me and what can be ordered in. My workspace consists of lots of stuff, as a lot of my work starts off by drawing, collaging and layering with my personal archives and this then progresses into printmaking, installation or whatever fits best.

Looking back on your time at LCC, what advice would you to yourself, if you could travel back in time?

My time at LCC was influenced heavily by the technicians and friends I made around me. I gained a lot of knowledge and experience from having the technicians around me all the time, enabling me to constantly learn and be experimental. Take advantage of the vast facilities and the knowledge that they all hold, they will always be supportive and try to make your ideas come to life.

If I could go back I would say to not be precious about my work, continually experiment and push myself out of comfort zones. I always make mistakes and make work that doesn’t “work”, but I use this as key learning and motivational points.

How did you get started as a technician?  What’s it like?

I started to train to be a technician in the summer of 2017, just after graduating from LCC. I was given the opportunity to do a traineeship in the printmaking and screen printing workshops, where I gained a huge amount of experience. This then led onto helping to run workshops as part of London Design Festival at LCC, including a live drawing micro-residency. I was being asked back for multiple days to help with workshops and daily running of the studios, before gaining a regular day working as a Printmaking Support Technician, which I have continued whilst studying.

I assist with monthly public workshops at Science Museum with ScreenGrab and volunteered in 2018, for a short time, as a technician at Print Club London.

I love being a technician and find myself learning every day. Not only do I really enjoy printing, but also helping students/printers to bring their ideas to reality and enabling them to experiment and push themselves into new areas.

Where can we see more of your work?

Most of my work in progress can be seen on my Instagram and more “finished” work on my website.

Instagram: @izzysmithson
Website: izzysmithson.com

Selected Exhibitions Since Graduating

• 2017 Graduate Show, London College of Communication
• 2017 Elephant Press, London Design Festival, London
• 2018 Print Showcase, Royal College of Art
• 2018 Object Resurrection, Hockney Gallery, Royal College of Art
• 2018 Sustainable Futures, Dyson Gallery, Royal College of Art
• 2019 Work In Progress Show, Royal College of Art, Battersea
• 2020 Against the Grain, Southwark Park Galleries

Natasha Howie graduated in 2018 from BA Illustration and Visual Media (IVM). She now works in event production, whilst continuing her illustration practice on the side, which encompasses printmaking, photography, and graphic design.

1.Tell us about yourself.  Have you always made art?

My interest in art started at an early age, learning alongside my older brother. His ability to capture a character through loose sketching and delicate cross hatching fascinated me. Consequently, I have always appreciated work which is both subtle yet dynamic.

In recent years I have also come to really appreciate the immediacy of reportage illustration. Learning how to capture fleeting gesture, expression and the soul of a place / people. Drawing in situ presents unexpected challenges which have provoked me to become more fearless and carefree in my practice.

2.  How did you get started in printmaking?

As illustration is now considered quite an ambiguous term, I was fortunate to work alongside a hugely eclectic group of people on my course. Practices ranged from animation, photography, print, poetry and performance. This very quickly encouraged me to explore different approaches to image making and to branch away from the traditional methods of drawing. With the slight tendency to disregard the research and development stages of creative briefs, I found myself always rushing into a final piece. Given this, I was prompted by my wonderful tutor Ima to slow down and try some printmaking. It was the first time I truly became captivated by the beauty of the process and it enabled me to discover multiple ways I could transform my hand drawn visuals. I then spent the best part of my 3 years at LCC exploring various forms of print; relief, intaglio, screen-printing, risograph and letter press.

3.  Who are your biggest influences?

I am really interested in Dutch and Russian poster design, in particular work by the Stenberg Brothers and H.N Werkman. I find the use of muted colours, texture and simple linear drawings a very satisfying combination.

A more contemporary artist I recently discovered was Renee Gouin. Her work consists of layered elements, typically very angular in shape and coupled with a minimal colour palette, the resulting work I find captivating.

During University I chose to explore multiple briefs working on the offset monoprint press using hand cut stencils. This method created sharp, abstracted pieces which presented very similar characteristics to the Constructivist movement. This is something I hope to continue to explore when I gain access to another print studio.

4.  Where do you make work now that you’ve graduated? 

After graduating, I continued to make work at LCC Print Club on Saturdays and then once I had gained a new role at londonprintstudio, I used my days off to work in the studio. I spent the majority of my time there exploring linocuts using the Beever Press. I decided to try this method of printing after being very inspired by the work of graphic designer Andrzej Klimowski who I met whilst working there.

Following my time at LPS I started to work within event production and I have since been trying to keep my illustration going as my side hustle. Under the current circumstances I have had to move back to my parents’ place in East Sussex. I have a little desk set up in my bedroom and I am using my time here to work on some commissions and continuing to build up my portfolio. This is a very peculiar time however it has presented a rare opportunity for myself to fully focus on generating some new work, albeit sometimes it is difficult sleeping and working in the same room I feel very lucky to have a space to create.  

5.  Looking back on your time at LCC, what advice would you to yourself, if you could travel back in time?

I would have taken up more opportunities to work on my Adobe and graphic design skills as I do believe this really helps to secure a future career.

I would have also liked to work on more collaborative briefs, such as the Elephant Café Cook Book (which came out so beautifully!). And I wish I had kept an eye out for more competitions set by industry professionals, especially as I had the opportunity to use really valuable facilities.

6.  Where can we see more of your work?  

When I graduated from LCC I took part in the Topolski Artist Residency, work from our final exhibition can be viewed here:@topolskistudio

I was selected to be part of Flock 2018 Graduate Show at Art East Gallery, where I exhibited screen prints from my Les Valaisans series.

I am also in the process of updating my website, and I continue to use Instagram to document my latest work: @natashahowieillustration