Luke with Simon the Cat and Sarah’s Mimosa Print

Print description

I made this print after a memorable life drawing session with my group, Brighton Draws Men, hosted in the beautiful apartment of my artist friend Sarah Arnett during the Brighton Artists Open House Festival, Winter 2024.

I’d just asked my life model, Luke, to pose sitting on the couch when I noticed Simon the cat nearby, completely relaxed and dozing on a cushion—totally unfazed by all the sketching and chatting around him. I couldn’t resist including him in the composition.

Print details

To create this print, I start by crafting individual drawings in ink, which collectively form a collage comprising the final piece. I scan my drawings and digitally add colour. The original design solely exists in digital format, and I print it using archival inks and paper. I then release my design as a limited edition print, available in standard ‘A’ sizes, ranging from A0 (84.1 cm x 118.9 cm) to A4 (21 x 29.7 cm).

Domestic Interior and self expression

This work echoes many different sources: from Vuillard’s colourful depictions of the domestic interior. Many of which I saw at Pallant House Gallery in 2022, to the Alekos Fassianos Foundation I visited in Athens in the summer of 2023. It also draws inspiration from and exhibition in summer 2024 at Studio Voltaire in London, which featured a pairing of work by Beryl Cook and Tom of Finland. Other references are the work of the Picasso linocut ‘Still Life with Glass under the Lamp’ (1962) I saw at the British Museum during the exhibition ‘Picasso Printmaker’’ in November 2024.

Corporealism

I have been running a life drawing session in Brighton at the Sussex County Arts Club for many years; the depiction of the human form is something that fascinates me. Through these pieces, I aimed to express my own personal experiences and the environment where I live.