Art (a former life)

I spent my former life as an art student for 5 years previous to having Wriggles. One year doing a foundation course at my local art college and 4 years at universtuding studying Fine Art at degree level. Whilst there, aside from getting covered in paint, spending my student loan on double-sided sticky tape, coffee and cake from the Art Cafe (a dubious cubby hole selling homemade baked wares and mildly dodgy coffee and toasties to fundraise for the annual degree show) and downing gin in mugs, I discovered print making which I adored. I used it for my final show and though have not strayed near a printing press or screenbed since, I do collect and covet other printmakers work. May bookcase has rather a lot of art books and my drawers are jammed packed full of postcards, greetings cards and review snippets. I only own one genuine print, a lino print by Hannah Firmin, but when I win the lottery, my abode will be full of beautiful and coloured prints! What I love about print is the illustrative styles and combinations of colour and pattern. One artist I adore who brings this together beautifully is contemporary printmaker Alice Melvin.

 

Her work ranges from traditional prints and drawings on paper, to intricate sprawling books and fold out paper sculptures and as commissions for merchandise, print for theatres and games. I saw her exhibition in early 2010 at the Red Door Gallery in Edinburgh whom commissioned 'Alice's Aviary' and since have collected many of her books and cards in lieu of originals which I currently cannot afford. Simply, I love it!

It brings back so many memories both of time I spent in Edinburgh, where I met Wriggles' father and also the time I spent both on my foundation and degree course. Like anytime as a young(er) person, I grumped about it at time but looking back I had a ball. Where else can you spend four years solidly playing with glitter or taking sock puppets to lectures? We were all tortured artists, even if we vehemently believed otherwise, and the run out to our own degree show was one of the most stressful periods of my life. Completely different to parenthood, but very driven and full of passion. A little taste of adult life to come.

Some of my student playings around!

Find more art at Midlife Singlemum's new meme.