The Natural World

Kris Maleckaite is an artist based in Oswestry, known for an earthy and grounded approach to jewellery making. Their pieces are a reflection of the connection between each other and our natural worlds. With a free-spirited imagination, Kris strives to translate conceptual ideas into wearable art. Each piece they create is an experiment, blending silver, brass, and copper to create unique and one-of-a-kind designs. Their jewellery is more than just adornment, it’s a conversation starter – inviting others to explore and interpret the world around them.

My ongoing inspiration as an artist comes from the landscapes of North Wales. It is here that I have spent my whole life exploring, inspired by many places that give me a sense of freedom and cut out the white noise of everyday life.

The context of my work represents specific elements of rural life that create an escape through the practice of drawing. The corvids are an ongoing subject; deeply beautiful, mischievous and their presence within the landscape really captivates me. Their energies have informed the expressive mark making within my entire art practice to the extent that whatever the subject may be, there is always a ‘crow like’ feeling.

I use a variety of drawing and printmaking techniques which have been developed from my Masters degree at the School of Creative Arts, Wrexham. I initially work with charcoal and later move to printing techniques such as etching, drypoint, collagraph, linocut and silkscreen.
I can get really immersed through the act of drawing, so much that I lose sense of time and self being

Since graduating from the Royal College of Art with an MA in Furniture Design my work has developed and diversified and the relationship of nature to the built environment is a key theme in my practice.

Whilst working in many different materials, my preference is for the sustainable and natural, for example: clay, wood, paper, glass and enamel.Learning about new materials and extending processes through collaboration with other makers and with manufacturers is a key part of my practise.

My aesthetic is clean and clear – reducing, simplifying and uncovering underlying patterns. I like to inject gentle humour, visual poetry, narrative and a sense of place into my work.

My overall aim is to humanise the built environment and help people to feel a connection with the places that they live and work in a subtle and very natural way.

Botanical Glass is inspired by the forests, mountains, rivers and meadows in the beautiful North Wales countryside. Influenced by the plants and trees and how colours, light and shapes change throughout the seasons. Fusing glass, coloured frits, enamels, painted imagery and using sandblasting to create layers of pattern and depth.

Bronwen calls herself a plasticsmith. Trained as a jeweller and silversmith, she juxtaposes waste plastic with recycled silver and, in so doing, seeks to challenge our perceptions of ‘preciousness’ and to reappraise plastic as a valuable, rather than a throwaway, material. She collects and selects beach plastic for its colour and texture and uses only hand tools to cut, file and gently embellish its surface. (The waste dust she creates is, in turn, mixed with binders and used to create new composite materials; very little is thrown away.)

This slow and very considered approach is inspired by the natural forces of the wind, waves, salt water and the tide and their effects on manmade materials such as plastic. Her shapes are inspired by abandoned boats, mooring buoys, pebbles and fossils.

Originally from the Sussex coast, my love for sculpting started at a young age when my father bought me a polymer clayset for my 6th birthday. I started attending a Saturday ceramic school at the age of 9 and have continued classes throughout my life. Last year I moved to the Isle of Anglesey and decided to start my own ceramics business to focus on my love of ceramic sculpture. From my studio I enjoy hand building, mark making, sgraffito, using oxides and painting in brightly coloured slips.

My hand build ceramic sculptures are inspired by myth & magic, folklore, legends and the natural world. Inspiration comes from Neolithic, Celtic, Druid, Norse & Christian influences, land and seascapes.

Each creation reflects my deep passion and reverence for the land and the nature that surrounds me. Using mark making, sgraffito and oxides to enfuse my sculptures with detail, my aim as an artist is to create a story within my sculptures. Each piece invites wonder and creativity, questions and narratives to build and form in your own mind. I hope to inspire you to connect with others through the art of ceramic sculpture and story telling.

Charlotte Baxter’s work evokes the constant fluctuations of the surrounding landscape, and the rhythms and cycles of the natural world. She is drawn to the wilder landscapes of her native West Wales and the places where water meets land, finding the visual contrasts between these two elements particularly captivating.

Working primarily with relief printing methods, she finds great freedom within the confines of the printmaking process, with each element bringing its own unique opportunity for the unexpected to happen.

Using a variety of tools to reveal the image from the wood block, she often works intuitively to add texture and pattern, and uses the natural chisel marks to depict the forms she experiences in the landscape around her. She then prints the carved blocks in succession, altering the colour and transparency of the ink in response to the previous layers to give the desired effect. Her wood and linocuts are often combined with other techniques, such as blind embossing and chine collé, to create multi-layered and richly textured prints.

I originally trained at Liverpool Art School, (now LJMU) and graduated with a BA Hons in Graphic Design and a PGCE in Art and Design. After a 25-year career as an Art teacher and sessional lecturer, I currently work as a practicing artist.

My work primarily draws inspiration from the rugged and windswept foreshores and estuaries around Wales and Cornwall, and the untamed landscape of Snowdonia, Cumbria, the Peak District and moorland areas. I set out to interpret landlines and textures created by changing tides and weather as the land is constantly reshaped and reclaimed. The fleeting effects of light on colour impacts strongly on my work in felt. Work begins with drawings and colour references on site, and developed back in the studio using British and Norwegian pure wools, flax, linen, hemp and silks. The use of pure natural fibres, using traditional and ancient felt-making methods, connects the artwork to the land it seeks to embody.

Elin is an artist from Machynlleth who makes prints using Collograph and Linocut. This series is based on the landscape around her in the Dovey Valley. The work derives from her appreciation of the rural way of life, traditions, the Welsh language, Welsh culture and the beauty of the landscape surrounding her which is an integral part of her life.

My current body of work consists of hand-built slab vessels and porcelain functional pieces. My work represents my life growing up in a village between a quarry and the sea. I represent, through my mark making and form, the textures and lines found on the mountainside and the landscape in which I live. They are portrayed in this collection by smooth areas contrasting with ripped edges that are exaggerated naturally by the clay. I have always been interested in the contrast between natural and man-made; this has been the focus of my work throughout my making.

My inspiration is driven by encapsulating the beauty of my immediate landscape within my pots. This begins with foraging for wild clay and earth pigments from my family’s farmland. My natural ceramic glaze is infused with iron ochre from the River Corris, where the colours of the earth pigments are bestowed onto the surface of the pot. The iron ochre creates unique patterns on each pot reflecting the landscape, and parallel to the traces mankind leaves within nature, and the natural world on us. The landscape physically and visually is a constant source of inspira*on. I want to create a relationship between people and nature through showing how beautiful nature can be with the natural colours given from the iron ochre onto my pots and the unglazed local clay pots. My work responds to the soil beneath our feet in Wales and our connection to the landscape, allowing people to take a piece of North Wales landscape home.

Each pot is hand thrown off the hump on the potters wheel and fired to 1100C oxidation. I process all the foraged natural materials by hand, through drying the mineral pigment and wild clay to aid with de-stoning. Lastly I hand grind the materials several times while passing the crushed materials through a series of sieves to achieve fine powdered local clay and ochre making it a usable substance.

Hannah Doyle is a printmaker and illustrator based in Ceredigion. She creates relief prints using woodcut and linocut techniques.Hannah originally studied art at Carmarthen College or Art, and then at Newcastle University, before working on nature reserves for most of her twenties. She returned to making art in her thirties and now exhibits her work in galleries throughout Wales.

She is fascinated by birds, drawn to their freedom and their unique relationships with the wilder edge-lands of the UK. Hannah can often be found sketching them and their habitats at her local nature reserves in the Dyfi Valley.

Hannah Duncan is a Swansea based contemporary jeweller and enamel artist. She graduated from Hereford College of Arts in 2016 with a BA (Hons) in Jewellery Design. She has produced jewellery collections inspired by Lunar Phases, Coastal Landscapes and Pebbles as well as a series of decorative enamelled bowls. Hannah is also the creator and curator of Quarantine Craft Fair, a popular online art fair that supported artists and makers throughout Britain during the Covid-19 lockdowns.

During the final year of her degree Hannah discovered a love of working with enamel and began a collection of jewellery based upon an area of the southwest coast of Scotland where her family owns a holiday hut. Since graduating Hannah has continued expanding her work inspired by British coastal landscapes.

Handmade predominantly in vitreous enamel, sterling silver and copper these designs are inspired by seascapes and sunsets. Hannah has found transparent enamels to be perfect for capturing both the subtle and striking colours reflected in the sea and sky. Her jewellery depicts the rich blues of a summer day, the delicate gradients of twilight skies and the stunning colours of dramatic sunsets.

Helen Owen graduated with a BA first class (Hons) in applied arts at the school of Creative arts in N Wales. I am a ceramic artist and live and work in Powys Wales. I am surrounded by the beautiful Dyfi countryside.

My direction of work since moving to wales has evolved into sculpting the wildlife that surrounds me everyday, which gives me inspiration for my work.

As well as wildlife sculptures I continue to make ceramic dogs which now include the dachshund as I have become slightly obsessed with them since a miniature dachshund joined our family.

I work with a mixture of clay mostly a groggy crank clay which I use to give strength to my larger pieces. I use paper clay for my smaller pieces which gives more detail to my work, sometimes I mix a smooth crank with a paper clay depending on the texture I want to achieve. I try to catch an emotion and story in the faces of the birds and animals I sculpt.

I prefer a muted painterly effect and use slips, stains, oxides and engobes to achieve this. My work is fired in the kiln two or three times up to a temperature of 1200 to get the desired effect.

Helen Smith works with kiln-formed glass in her studio in the north-west corner of the Wirral peninsula. Using a variety of processes including fusing layered glass and glass powders, kiln-forming and sandblasting, she creates beautifully tactile sculptural landscapes as well as a range of bowls all influenced by her coastal location.

After a first career in IT and raising a family, Helen completed a BA Design: Applied Arts degree at Glyndwr University in 2013, specialising in glass. She is a member of the Contemporary Glass Society, a partner in the ‘Lake Gallery’ in West Kirby and a member of the small team which coordinates the annual ‘Wirral Open Studio Tour’.

Jewellery designer Kate Rhodes grew up in the picturesque landscape of the Lake District. She studied an experimental foundation course at Cumbria College of Art and Design and received a BA (Hons) degree in Jewellery and Silversmithing from Loughborough University. Kate’s studies gave her the technical foundation and freedom to explore different areas, and develop her signature style and exploration of metal smithing.

Inspired by the countryside surrounding her home in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire, Kate uses colour as a visual language through her jewellery. Her initial designs and sketches tell a story; she loves to doodle and draw until an idea comes to her. Colour plays an important part in her work, and she is highly influenced by 20th century abstract sculpture and textiles.

“I try to run an ethical workshop,” says Kate. “Recycled silver and gold, off-cuts of titanium are used in the work, and I am starting to source my other metals from recycled sources. My electricity is from a green tariff using entirely renewable sources”.

I make ceramic and sterling silver jewellery inspired by the beautiful coastal landscape around my home in the Llŷn peninsula, North Wales.

Each piece is individually made by hand. I use traditional ceramic processes as well as printmaking techniques and work intuitively. I often work from sketchbook drawings of the landscape, particularly drawings of human marks on the land. The ceramics are high fired stoneware and porcelain, and I use platinum and gold lustre glazes to add detail to the fired ceramic surface.

I studied Fine Art at North Wales School of Art & Design in Wrexham and graduated with a First-Class honour’s degree in 2009.

Liz Toole is a printmaker who has a genuine love of birds. Working and traveling in Africa has informed and inspired Liz’s work, this is where she fell in love with nature, mainly birds, following her ceramics degree. Liz uses birds to tell a story which is usually something that has happened in her life, she aims to create a positive story.

All of Liz’s screen prints and linocuts are designed and hand printed by her using specialized printmaking papers. Colour plays a huge part in Liz’s work, she has been known to test print 60 different colour combinations for a two colour screenprint, waiting for that eureka moment.

Liz’s love of printmaking is because she is continually learning, this keeps it exciting and fresh.

I am a self-taught potter making functional and decorative pottery. I absolutely love the tactile nature of pottery. My pottery is wheel-thrown and hand-built. I enjoy exploring the many different ways of making and decorating ceramics. No two pieces are the same and each mug, vase, bowl or vessel is approached as it’s own unique canvas.

I have always had a love of surface pattern and mark-making, studying Printed Textiles at University. This love of mark making has played a big part in finding my own ceramic decorating style and is something that is constantly evolving as I learn more about the endless possibilities in ceramics. My inspiration comes from the stunning welsh landscape. A perfect blend of ruggedly beautiful coastline, pristine beaches and luscious forests, with the Snowdonia mountain range in the background.

I like to play around with transparency and opacity to build up layers of colour and create an abstract painting of the local landscape. In each piece I try to encapsulate a sense of movement and energy using a variety of paint applications and differing brushstroke. I also like my pieces to have a sense of calm within them, an appreciation for the natural beauty around us and those softer, quieter moments that can sometimes be missed in the busyness of modern day living. I use sgraffito and pencil and sometimes even a splash of gold lustre to add detail that further enhances each piece.

I believe in craftsmanship and carrying the torch for traditional skills. I love the thought of a piece of my pottery being kept and passed on down through generations. I hope my ceramic pieces will be used and enjoyed for many years.

Meggan Lloyd Prys’ verdigris jewellery is crafted using sea water from the Menai Strait. Môn a Môr, her jewellery line, takes raw brass cuttings/shapes through a bathing process including seawater to create natural blue and green patina on brass. No paint is used to produce the colours that you see. The pigment on the pieces is the result of the verdigris process.

Each piece is unique and is often reworked to form multiple layers of patina until the desired aesthetic is achieved. The pieces are then coated with a light lacquer to protect the patina. As Verdigris is a natural process, pieces will change over time, only adding to their appeal.

Mouse Sails started in the late 1980’s making sails for windsurfers and yachts. Floss took over when their parents retired.

They aim to minimise sailings impact on the environment by reusing and recycling old, damaged and discarded sails, which are used as raw materials for their range of bags.

Each bag is unlined and designed to be a working bag, with the hard-wearing sail material making them quick to dry and easy to clean.

The bags all bear the marks of their previous usage and life at sea. On the bags label you will be able to find the sail type, area of sailing and notable features on the sail such as: hank stains, reefing points, repairs or abrasions, prototype, batton pockets or UV effects. These features make each bag completely unique.

My name is Natalie Laura Ellen and I’m a print and pattern designer specialising in textiles, homewares, stationery and editioned prints.

My designs are inspired by nature and often begin with photography and sketched ideas, which I develop into repeatable motifs using different mediums including drawing, painting and various printmaking techniques.

I manipulate these motifs into repeat patterns digitally for a range of home textiles and other printed products. I enjoy seeing how far I can take an idea, right through from original research, photography and drawing to hands on printmaking, final digital manipulation and product development.

I studied Textiles and Pattern Design at university, before working for a digital textiles manufacturer in Manchester for several years. I started my own business in 2017, and since 2019 I have been part of the Grounded Printmakers collective at the brilliant Hot Bed Press print workshop in Salford, working closely with other creatives and organising exhibitions together across the North West. I share a studio and shop space at Manchester Craft and Design Centre.

Paul’s career has always been immersed in the world of furniture design and making, starting with a Masters Degree in Furniture Design.

This led to further opportunities to work for larger scale businesses, designing and manufacturing upholstery and cabinet product ranges for the main UK furniture retailers such as Marks and Spencer, John Lewis, Next and key independent stores.

Paul’s underlying ambition however, was to eventually return to artisan design and his attendance at a creative green woodworking course in 2018 ignited this desire.

Green woodworking is a very rewarding process allowing Paul to hand shape freshly cut timber before gently drying out the moisture. Paul uses a draw knife and spoke shave on a shave horse, often outside in the forest, and leaves the makers marks intact to give texture and character to each piece.

Steam bending is an ancient process where timber is held in a steam box in which it softens and becomes pliable. This allows Paul to then create sculptural, flowing forms without the need for glue or laminating.

Autumn leaves decoupage is a process unique to Paul products. Inspired by the beauty of autumn leaves, Paul developed a process to press, dry and then apply the leaves to a flat surface such as a table top or clock face. He gently sands back the surface to highlight the vein structures and colours producing a unique pattern on every piece.

Ruth makes original screenprints and collages from a studio near Bala, North Wales. The prints are all made by hand, using Fabriano watercolour paper. This surface has a silk-like quality and holds the colour beautifully. It’s also acid free, which means it doesn’t fade or discolour.

Each design is made in a small edition. The prints are individually numbered and signed. Once an edition is sold out, Ruth adapts some of the images for her range of greetings cards.

Ruth trained as a textile designer in Liverpool and Birmingham, after which she worked as a freelance designer and illustrator. Clients have included Ikea, Sainsbury’s, Waterstones and Marks and Spencer. She has worked extensively with Tate, writing and illustrating 3 children’s books and a designing a range of toys, clothes and tableware. Her prints focus on plants, gardens and animals with a nod to mid-century design. There is a strong illustrative style, with bold colours in contrasting layers.

Sara Lloyd-Morris crafts a diverse range of eco-silver jewellery, including rings, earrings, necklaces, brooches, and bracelets. Inspired by the rich Pembrokeshire landscapes and wildlife, Sara’s designs capture the essence of creatures found in the region’s land, sea, and sky.

Sara studied at The School of Jewellery and Silversmithing in Hockley, Birmingham – the heart of the jewellery quarter – her first job was in the studio of the late Andre Grima HRH, Jermyn Street, London. Sara is also a member of the Association of Contemporary Jewellers and Makers Guild in Wales.

Sara loves to use techniques such as reticulation – melting the surface so it creates waves, roller printing with different textures created with original etched plates that she has named sea-spray, water-worn, evening-light, spiral-whisper and warm-rain all inspired by the south westerly winds and the green verdant land they create.

Sara uses a mixture of metal including brass, copper, bronze, 925 sterling silver and recycled gold. Giving brass another life with the soft tones of a blue/green verdigris and copper treated with fire and water to create a rich earth-red, alchemy or maybe just a bit of magic. She then combines them with precious and semi precious stones, pearls or pebbles collected whilst beach combing.

Sophie Symes is a mixed media maker striving to create intriguing installations, jewellery and objects. Seeking out intricate surreal forms in nature to inform her tactile work, she hopes to combine beautiful form with personal concepts to create thought-provoking art.

Formally trained as a jeweller at the prestigious School of Jewellery as well as dedicated art college, Hereford College of Arts, she creates with accuracy and delicacy. Creating fine and art jewellery as well as installations and sculpture, she aims to use art as a vehicle for communication to highlight important social issues and push the boundaries of art and jewellery design.

Following personal experiences Sophie has decided to delve deeper into the subject of mental illness and its effects on the body. Many of her recent works have focused on the engulfing feeling of overwhelm. Using hand-sculpted growths reminiscent of lichen or coral, as a physical representation of overwhelm, she hopes to illustrate how it feels to experience a mental illness such as anxiety or depression. Through her encrusted creations she hopes to break down barriers and misconceptions surrounding mental health.