Meet the Maker : Sam Kelly
Hello, I am Sam Kelly, a Dorset based printmaker. With eyes, ears and an open heart, walking barefoot on the earth, I sketch, print, create, chant, cycle and wonder.
Describe your printmaking process
Printing for me is an organic process. I daydream, I observe, listen, create a story and wait until the image of the story I want to print is clear in my head. Then I sit at my desk and draw. I am a storyteller more than a technician so sometimes I have to adapt my ideas as I have more experience with relief printmaking. Drawing and printmaking are different and sometimes my drawings won’t work as prints. The more experience I have had, the more mistakes I have made, I have understood the difference. Once I have traced my image onto the lino I work pretty quickly. I have to remind myself to slow down as I’m always excited to see the finished print. The hard lesson is that if you are tired or rush there is a higher risk of making mistakes and you can’t stick back lino once you’ve cut it. I fit in printmaking around other work and projects but try to have dedicated days to complete a print once I’ve started.
How and where did you learn to print?
I am a self taught printmaker who has always designed, drawn and created in some way. I have an M.A from Central St Martins College of Art in European Scenography where I studied theatre design and performance creation in London and Prague. This was an incredible adventure in meeting so many diverse creatives, discovering history and people’s stories which unlocked my fascination with storytelling.
Why printmaking?
I discovered Lino printing on holiday staying in a garden where boxes of paints, pencils, papers and art materials were squirrelled away to use. It was super sunny and I carved my first lino in the shade of some huge wisteria pods which later featured in a wallpaper print for the owners.
I love drawing and then transferring the finished sketch to a material where you really physically engage in creation.
Gouging the lino, is very satisfying- the sensation of the tools cutting through the lino is completely sensory. Then there’s the feel of sticky ink applied on glass, pretty delightful. Next, rolling the ink onto the linocut and the wonder of witnessing the idea in your imagination as it emerges and takes life. Printmaking also has a real element of jeopardy. Is the image what you conjured in your mind’s eye? Does it tell the story? Does it actually work aesthetically? Then comes the care and precision of laying beautiful paper onto the inked image and the heavy work of pressing this in my old iron bookbinding press.
To be honest, it’s a huge lot of fun. It is also a brilliant process for being able to reproduce work where each print is to a degree, original and infused with energy and love. It’s pretty special to be able to share a story through art with another human being in an affordable way. For people to be able to own a handmade piece of art that tells a story and means something to them without breaking the bank is important to me. It is also surprisingly successful if you only have very limited materials and a small space to work in.
Where do you work?
I work from a wooden desk that I’ve had since I was a child. I revised for my exams, have written letters, sketched, drawn, designed and now print on this table. Every mark on the surface is a record of my life so far in projects and creations. I use a vintage iron book-binding press that has been gifted for use by a friend whose mother was a beautiful artist which sits on the floor as it’s too heavy for me to lift on and off of the desk.
I am very fortunate to have a little craft room where I can make a mess and have a utility room with a stainless steel sink. Recently I handprinted 50 Hanuman prints to gift. All of my floor spaces were covered and glowing with drying prints and it meant carefully tiptoeing around them. I wondered if it was possible and it was. Another project was hand printing two rolls of wallpaper. I was a human press, standing on every block. I had to use an oil based ink for this and it took weeks to dry in the winter but it worked and hung successfully in the owner’s home without any issues. This was definitely an adventure.
Describe a typical day in your studio
There’s no typical day really. Sometimes I am drawing, others making the print and a good deal of time is spent creating the card folders and packaging I use. I handprint postcards to send a handwritten card with each print, re-purpose recycled materials and take myself off to my local post office to send prints to their expectant owners. This takes more time than I ever imagined.
How long have you been printmaking?
I’ve been printmaking for 6 years and selling for 5.
What inspires you?
I don’t drive and so move slowly through the world, walking, cycling, bus and train journeys. This gives me time to really observe what’s going on. I crave fresh air in any season, being outside and being with quietly creative and kind people. I read a lot, travel and absolutely love stories from all around the world. I live in a stunning part of the U.K, close to the Jurassic Coast, rivers, ancient woodlands and history and engage with communities who are drawn to fireside tales, music, spirituality and respect for difference.
Many of my prints feature swifts as each year I anxiously await their return. It reminds me how fragile our changing world is, how resilient these incredible migrants are and how blessed I am. The exhilaration of standing below squadrons of swifts has to be experienced.
What is your favourite printmaking product?
Without doubt I couldn’t print without Caligo Safewash inks. They were a revelation to me when I was struggling to handprint without a press and this means that I can produce high quality prints using very little equipment. I use the pure colour or mix to create my own shades. Japanese Ho Sho paper is affordable, has a lovely natural colour and the smooth surface means that my bookbinding press and hand burnishing are enough to achieve high quality prints. Together they are the dream team. I really would love to be able to use traditional, hessian backed lino as an eco friendly option but find that I just can’t get a beautiful handprint using this surface and it is tricky to dry and reuse quickly. I use a high quality Japanese vinyl for my work which is smooth enough to achieve an even print and allows me to cut sharp defined detail. I relay heavily on small gauge Pfeil cutting tools and aim to learn how to re-sharpen these myself as they are so beautifully made.
What have you made that you are most proud of?
One of my first and most popular prints is , ‘The Storyteller’. It was inspired by a night of storytelling under the stars in beautiful woodland around a huge fire. The storyteller, Charlotte Mooney told such captivating stories about the intelligence of corvids and I was immediately inspired. This print has travelled far and wide and has been found in my shop by many Native American people. Memorably I was asked if I could make a version of this print for a Choctaw medicine woman and worked from a picture of her that I had been sent. I was so honoured. So many people have seen this print and had an instant connection and have shared their stories with me. I smile to think that this print has journeyed from my little desk to incredible communities and people from as far afield as Mississippi to Maui, Aberdeen and Alaska.
My most recent print, ‘Hanuman Ji Walks with me’ was inspired by a recent pilgrimage into the Himalayas with the charity, Go Dharmic. As part of a retreat that I supported this year, I gifted 50 Hanuman prints to the participants and volunteers. I will never forget the gratitude and love as I handed each person their print. Some have already been framed and added to shrines in their homes.
Where can we see your work? Where do you sell?
I sell on Etsy. I am always thrilled to receive orders and my global geography has definitely improved since selling here. My ‘Fossil Hunter’ print of the palaeontologist and scientist Mary Anning, was recently exhibited at The Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool as part of the Gender Stories exhibition. To have a print created on my little desk at home exhibited alongside Grayson Perry and David Hockney still makes me smile. It was unexpected, unplanned and yet another surprise along my journey. I've also recently started selling work at a wonderful shop in Bridport, Human Nature Dorset.
What will we be seeing from you next?
At the moment I am trying to go with the flow because that seems to be when the good stuff happens. Daydreaming new ideas to put out into the world and seeing where they take themselves. It really feels that my prints have a life of their own and find their own owners. Some prints want to be sold and others want to be gifts. I don’t think any of this is up to me. I would love to collaborate with storytellers from around the world but mostly to keep creating.
Do you have any advice for other printmakers and creatives?
If you want to print and create, do it. You only need a surface to work on, even one tube of good quality ink, a good quality roller and quality paper. Invest in some very good, reliable basics from a specialist supplier. Handprinted have been my best find - beautiful products, a great range and speedy and reliable service. If you need to save money buy less but you really do need quality as otherwise your print results can be disheartening. I don’t have a studio, expensive press, drying rack and it’s been possible. If you can, try and stay as eco friendly as possible, after all it’s usually our world that is the inspiration so at the very least some thought about finding sustainable options for me is essential. Awareness about what you are washing down the sink, what you are throwing away, where you resource your materials from to create the kindest most beautiful prints you can. There’s great information out there from experienced and caring suppliers. Once you’ve shared your prints with family and friends, set up a small shop and see who arrives. I have enjoyed the feedback and the wonder that my prints are now hanging in homes all over the world.
To see more from Sam, follow her on Instagram!
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