A little bit about me
My art is inspired
by a big interest in architecture. I
love the shapes, sounds, colours, and smells in the built up area. I love the way there is always something
behind and your picture is already cropped.
The city is full of secrets to be discovered, round every corner there
is something new. As a child I thought I wanted to be an
architect, but I was told I had to be good at maths and filling my maths
exercise books with doodles and drawings, it was pretty obvious that perhaps I
was going in the wrong direction. I
concentrated on art but it was some time later before I undertook higher
education training. After completing a
foundation course in art and design at Richmond College, a magical year, I went
on to do a BA in Fine Art Printmaking and Book Arts at Croydon College. The built environment crept into projects at
any opportunity and my final piece consisted of some large canvases in blue and
orange transcending a reality which came about after a study of high rise post
war mass housing. My dissertation
discussed the truth behind a photograph where I looked at the work of Andreas
Gursky and his huge photographs bringing in the theory of the sublime and especially
looking at Kant’s writings. Despite
painting at this stage it was printmaking I wanted to continue with and I
undertook a Masters Degree course at Wimbledon School of Art, after which I
bought a Victorian albion press and set up my own studio space. My new career as a printmaker was properly
born! The press wasn’t big and I
produced many series of small prints.
They could hang well on their own but also look good as sets. Architecture and urban themes continued to be
the main driver, with a focus on much loved landmarks, and blue and orange colour
combinations recurring regularly. London
was a big focus but other cities too, with a range of Birmingham prints being
worked on over time. A few years ago I
bought a bigger albion press and had it installed in my little studio. It’s given me a great opportunity to shift
the focus and take a wider viewpoint. I
still have a love of the urban landscape but I’m also looking at rural themes,
inspired often by the landscape a little to the south west of London where I’m
based.
I work by the
reduction linocut method which involves the successive cutting away of the
block and printing over the previously worked colour until the finished print
is achieved. It’s a risky process and
needs careful planning. There is no going back and the whole edition must be
completed at the same time.
I admire many
printmakers but big loves of mine are Edward Bawden and Robert Tavener and I
look to their work regularly for inspiration.
I am a member of the
Fountain Gallery near Hampton Court where I have my own fortnight show each
year as well as take part in group shows with the other members. I’m also with Greenwich Printmakers and Southbank
Printmakers and have work for sale in these galleries at all times, and with the
Printmakers Council I take part in some group shows.
I regularly show at
the Affordable Art Fair (Battersea) with Greenwich Printmakers, and the
Affordable Art Fair (Hampstead) with East London Printmakers, and do the
Landmark Arts Centre (Teddington) Art Fair each year. Sometimes I exhibit at other fairs.
I have work in the V&A print archive and the Scarborough Art Gallery and Museum archive as well as collections with several major UK companies.
Currently most of my designs are available to be licensed for publishing. Please get in touch with me if interested.
Art Angels have recently add two of my designs to their range of Printmakers cards. Orwell Press Art Publishing have the rights to The End of the Pier (Brighton) to reproduce as greetings cards. Previously I had a range with Blue Island Press and Canns Down Press.
John
Lewis Partnership have in the past sold a selection of my originals and had a range licensed to
sell throughout their stores.
For current and
uptodate information about shows and galleries who sell my work please see my
News and Exhibiting Galleries Pages.
All the work for
sale on my website can be bought from here following the links given.
If you would like
to be added to my mailing list please contact me using the link at the top left
of the page.
Jennie Ing
updated May 2024