I am a designer-maker specialising in digital embroidery for bespoke interiors,and have described myself in the past as a “digital artisan”. My market is luxury interiors, where customers and commissioners have a strong appreciation of contemporary collectable craftsmanship and innovative design. The drawing and embroideries grow over rich velvets and silk papers. I create richly embellished narratives inspired by pattern histories, traditional fabrics and contemporary cultures, which flamboyantly fuse artisan craftsmanship and creative digital technologies.
I use the idea of the blank canvas as a starting point to imagine what might flourish. My work reflects the strong trend for maximalism in interiors, defined as “more colour, more texture and more fun, from understated tones with splashes of bold colour to decadent textures”. Golds and copper threads create opulent luxury in my contemporary ‘urban’ chinoiserie’ riot of feral squirrels and regal peacocks; blocks of orange colour pop neon bright across a muted silk Koi wallpaper and deep navy footstools. I love the way contemporary maximalism combines patterns and textures, from theatrical opulence to textured artisanal fabrics.
I see my work reflecting the dynamic process of the blank canvas becoming a beautiful design in each exhibitor’s work. A blank canvas could be a plain gold wall, against which my Peacocks shimmer, or a dark rich colour where the wallpapers and furniture are shown against another muted wallpaper print of the drawings that inspired them; the blank canvas becomes embellished in print and thread.