the artist

anna is a local walthamstow-based artist who focuses on printmaking and runs inky cuttlefish studios in gnome house. born in south africa, anna studied fine art at the university of natal and then later graduated from the university of the arts london with a masters in printmaking. her delicate and distinctive lino prints have become well known across e17 and have reached various corners of the globe. she has passionate ties to africa which reveal themselves in her practice, as well as fascinations with folklore, mythology, legends and the afterlife.

the story

‘the 'wetlands tales' screen prints are taken from four original linocut panels telling the history of the walthamstow wetlands, the river lea and coppermill stream. the story begins with ''wilcumestou' (mentioned in the doomsday book in 1086) and highlights key points in the history of the wetlands including the english civil war of the 17th century, the mills that were powered by the river and east london waterworks during the victorian period when the reservoirs and engine house were built. the story ends with the final panel of what the wetlands is today - an internationally important nature reserve and site of special scientific Interest, providing home and shelter to a wide range of wildlife, and especially birds.’

‘the images were drawn directly onto the lino with a feather found in the nature reserve using japanese sumi ink, with the intention of having flow and capturing the immediacy of my response to the story with a medium that was liquid. the whole story was ‘told’ as one long 4m panel with the river lea running through the whole piece, before being cut into sections for printing. there is also a ‘bird-child’ who appears throughout the narrative. when it came to the carving, i was inspired by the traditional woodcut illustrations of old manuscripts. my children and friends helped with the carving.’

the artwork

this artwork is a limited edition screen print of a lino print, printed with a subtle metallic copper ink. the image size is approximately 45 x 34 cm. it is sold bespoke framed in a white solid wood box frame measuring 61 x 48 cm.

delivery

we undertake to dispatch the artwork within 3 working days of receiving the order. please, contact johanna@artsnug.com for a shipping quote of the framed artwork.