Baking. That’s not on the list of things I do in my work… But Studio Snack, a five minute podcast series I’ve been cooking up with fellow designer Narcis Sauleda, brought up the subject of biscuit typography. Baking letterforms is an interesting exercise in itself – it makes you think about … Read More
“Ooh, look at that ampersand!”… Exploring anywhere with me is a thing of constant distractions. Here, two signs I designed for a pepperpot lodge house in Suffolk, created to do their job in directing deliveries and visitors while being part of the place and its setting; and from a visit … Read More
Artist Angie Clarke introduced me to Beaucatcher salon in Stoke Newington, Hackney. Beaucatcher gave me my first exhibition, my first illustrated shop window and orchestrated A Very Stokey Christmas, a local shops initiative, which I illustrated. Through that, I worked with Karen at homeware shop Know & Love – who won … Read More
Fit for the job… As COP26 starts, 26 Habitats and its follow-on, 26 Pledges, a creative collaboration between 26 and the Wildlife Trusts, hands over to 26 Habitats New Zealand, where writers, each with a different artist, are working in partnership with Forest and Bird. So I get a chance … Read More
“How does Lydia do this!”… It’s always a delight when a client enjoys the work from a live sketching commission, here, an assignment for long-time client Ideas Foundation covering the Disrupt Space exhibition at The Department Store, Brixton. And this time, my client Heather’s comment set off a stock-take of … Read More
Adventures in natural colour… It all started when Cordwainers Dye wanted to join in with an activity I had designed for East End WI joining up drawing with embroidery. In turn, I took part in their bundle-dyeing workshop. And so, a conversation started about colour. Experiments with natural inks are … Read More
Reporting in miniature… My late father and I had a standing joke: that his ideal scale to work at was the size of a building and mine was the size of a postage stamp. So he’d be laughing like a drain that I answered The Correspondence Collective’s open call for … Read More
Creating connection… In Spring 2020, in the first coronavirus lockdown, I ran a workshop for East End WI, using plant drawing to connect women who drew with women who embroidered. Fashion-focused growing and making project Cordwainers Dye picked it up on Instagram and asked if they could embroider a piece. … Read More
From invention to creativity… My practice runs on curiosity. I work with some fascinating science clients and project partners and some of them have been involved in the SunSpaceArt STEAM festival (science, technology, engineering, art and maths) so I’ve dropped in to talks during the day. But when I think … Read More
Weird year: new insights… Well, 2020… over here, the entire pattern of studio life was thrown into disarray. But I was brought up by parents who had to adapt countless times, decades before pivoting was a thing. So in the silence of the first lockdown, I started rearranging things. New … Read More