Homes collect things. Art gives them a point of view.
My home is filled with books (the majority supported by my cook book obsession), plants, handmade art I have bought on travels, and from artists that I like.
What I love about handmade art is that it introduces evidence of a human hand, a decision, a moment where someone somewhere stopped and made something slowly, specially for you.
When you hang an original lino print or any handmade artwork, yes you're filling a wall space, but also adding a story and intention. Which I love to do.
Small irregularities in printmaking, slight variations in ink, and the actual impression of the carved lino, remind us that a real person stood at a workbench or table making choices.
As a printmaker, that's the part of what I love about lino printing. Every stage is physical and full of ideas and thoughts. Sketching ideas, carving the lino, rolling ink, pulling each print by hand. Even after making the same design multiple times, every print still ends up slightly different. There is always some variation in texture, pressure, or detail that makes each one unique.
Handmade art also helps a home feel more personal that just styled. So instead of following trends, you begin building a collection that reflects what you love. That's also how I choose what to print. Whilst a lot of my work is nautical art, I also love cooking, and enjoy learning about history.
Buying from independent artists connects your home to real creative communities. You know where the work has come from and who made it.
A home rarely needs more things.
Sometimes the pieces we connect with are not the biggest or most expensive, but the ones that bring a little sunshine, memory and meaning into a space.
Sundowner Studio - Q&A
What is your favourite piece of handmade art that you own?
Probably a series of three tiny paintings I bought in Jodhpur a few years ago. The detail is incredible considering how small it is, but I think I love it just as much because it reminds me of being there. Jodhpur is one of my favourite cities, and every time I see the painting it brings back the blue colours, the noise, and looking up wherever you are in the city to the mighty Mehrangarh Fort. I met the artist, whose family had been painting miniatures for generations, and the skill had been passed down to him.
The three paintings are by my dining table where I work and get my prints ready.
How do you choose artwork for your own walls?
With a lot of pieces, I like like bringing the outdoors in where I can. My apartment is within a marina, and being so close to the water, I can sometimes see ripples of the water being reflected by light onto my walls in the main living area, and ceiling which I love. I am also inspired by having the balcony doors wide open and hearing the clacking of the masts, and the seagulls. So in the rooms, I like to keep the art fresh, light and with pieces that remind me of where I live. Some artwork is hung up, but we also have huge reclaimed wood shelves, which are perfect for leaning framed lino prints, in amongst books, plants and little ornaments we have collected from travels.
In the spare bedroom, in contrast, we have gone a dark green which reminded my husband of trekking through the Amazon Rainforest, so the artwork in this room reflects this, with beautiful tropical birds.
So whilst these two rooms, for example may have a certain theme, it's still mixed up with other parts of me, keeping it authentic, interesting, and alive.
Here's a few of my lino prints I have up in my home:
Lobster - in the kitchen
Sailing Yacht - in the entrance hallway
Anne Boleyn - propped up on a bookshelf
