Hello, Petal, my exhibition of botanical work...
My live botanical sketching is full of discovery: colours more complex than they first appear, astonishing engineering and above all, what nature can show us about time. This show brings together giclée prints of watercolour sketches, original drawings and textile pieces.
I’ve been described as drawing like a journalist. My quick, gestural drawing is a form of note-taking so everything has handwritten captions.
But putting on this exhibition has been about a lot more than the pictures. I bring to each strand of my work the skills, knowledge and thinking from the others…
I know the venue, Springfield Park Café, an historic house in a beautiful park alongside the River Lea in East London – but from my work for and at events, I also knew to do a proper recce, to consider its spaces and character.
I’ve brought my knowledge of ‘pacing’ a publication layout to the layout of the show around three large ‘anchor’ pieces, textile pieces made for the exhibition, the chillis a nod to the mid-century colours of the furniture.
My communication design work has informed the branding, information, captioning and social media.
My interest in creative reuse has come into the textile pieces, much of the cloth from Yodomo’s textile reuse hub and from my own offcuts. And many of the original sketches have been drawn on handed-down paper.
I’ve used my project and production management experience to plan, pick brains and consider the light in the space – original sketches that use non-lightfast inks are shown as giclée prints and I’ve reused my test proofs for a mini-collection in my Teemill shop.
And the title? There’s a story. Ply me with cake and I might tell it to you. Well, this is a show in a café…
Hello, Petal is at Springfield Park Café, Springfield, London E5 9EF from 24 April to 11 June; meet the artist on Saturday 10 May 10.30am – 3.30pm.
Download the exhibition catalogue here.
All of the work is for sale. A selection of the giclée prints is available to order online or contact me to enquire.
The exhibition tee and mug mini-collection is on my Teemill shop.
