I’ve always loved swimming, especially in rivers, lakes and the ocean. Worries melt away after a few minutes of submerging my body in the cold, the water coaxing me out of my mind and into my body where I’m most at home.

It’s a slow process, going for a swim. I find my kit, walk to the lake, get changed with trepidation and faff about with my hat and goggles to put off the inevitable cold plunge as long as possible.

I mirrored this slow energy in my creative process, taking time to feel before diving in to making work. I gathered inspiration and visual references from my favourite wild swimming spots through observational drawing. This was a great excuse to sit and chat with swimmers about this silly but wonderful thing we love to do. Then I enjoyed making single images in monoprint without an end goal in mind. A series then emerged which I put together as this short book.

The images are large A3 to A2 sized monoprints. I used the roller’s marks to convey the texture of the water and wiped away the ink to capture the light reflecting off ripples. I drew out figures from the ink to create a unity between the swimmers and the water.

Drawing on top of the prints with coloured pencil, oil pastel and acrylic ink allowed me to show the range of textures found in nature around wild swimming spots.

Each day spent in the print room started with a dip in a nearby lido. Sometimes I’d still be warming up from the cold water when I’d started working, and I feel this energy is channelled into the prints. I always work standing up to embody my energy and emotions into the artwork.

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Education:
Cambridge School of Art (Anglia Ruskin University)
MA Children's Book Illustration
Graduation: 2024

http://www.thehappybookcompany.com/happyportfolio
@happybooklady