What’s On Plymouth Culture reporter and fashion designer Victoria Lammie caught up with printmaker Megan Hall to talk about her art practice as a traditional printmaker, wild swimming and the endless inspiration she finds in the sea.
For those discovering you work for the first time, how would you describe who you are and what you do?
I’m a traditional printmaker and I specialise in reduction lino cut, which is where I work with one piece of linoleum and I use traditional battleship grey linoleum as it’s the only kind of fully biodegradable form which is important to me. But I carve and print successive layers in order to build up an image. That might be two or three layers all the way to nine or ten layers which is the most I’ve done. It’s pretty much all water themed. I have a definite muse.
Image (Victoria Lammie)
How did you get started as a printmaker?
I’d always been artistic and I went to Plymouth University and I studied design illustration but I really never got to touch print making. We had one print making room and it was very hard to actually get the time to spend in there. Generally screen print is what you were led towards. So anyway, I started swimming outdoors in 2018, in November. It was a big bright moon, a glorious first swim and that's what gave me the creative energy to begin being artistic again. After university I’d taken a seven year break and I hadn’t touched anything creative. I wanted to do something that was successful from home and where I could produce multiple originals, as that really appeals to me.
What inspires you?
That’s definitely water. In my first year I worked under the brand name Flotsam Prints and you'll still find my greeting card range under that name. It was a very swimming-based range, images of people enjoying the water every which way they could. Then last April I started really focusing on water itself, not having boats, people or another subject matter that takes precedence but just focusing on the texture of water.
Image (Megan Hall)
What are you currently working on?
I’ve been doing lots of snorkelling and that's left me exploring what's below the surface. Looking at the texture of water, bubbles rising to the surface and reflections. Seaweed and flora and fauna. I do have an underwater camera which is a fantastic little compact that I’ve been able to take some amazing photos with. All in and around Plymouth. I saw my first octopus a few weeks ago and although it saddens me that it’s a sign that the sea is getting warmer it was a magical encounter that I will take with me forever and I’ll probably be doing an illustrative piece for greeting cards from it.
You're taking part in the Makers Markets at The Box in November. Can you tell me what you will be showing there and what people can expect to see?
I’ll be bringing along a range of original linocut prints, all small, limited editions There will also be a few smaller pieces in there, where I’m trying out different techniques and viewpoints. I’ll also bring along around fifty of my best-selling cards, so you’ll be able to stock up for Christmas. You’ll find me in the foyer.
Image (Megan Hall)
What's next for you and your practice?
I’d like to explore more forms of printmaking. I’m largely self taught. I’d love to look at ‘mokuhanga’ which is the traditional Japanese form of relief printing using rice paste and pigments. Again it’s a kinder practice on the environment, using wood to carve the image. There are only a few practitioners that teach it in the UK, so I am looking into funding opportunities. With my subject matter being water, I think that medium would work really well.
Megan’s printmaking has an almost photographic quality about it, capturing the intricate detail, movement and beauty of the natural world in a truly beautiful way. Her love of the sea is very evident in everything she creates, from the subjects she chooses to the textures, tones and sense of movement within each piece. Be sure to go and see her at The Box, Winter Makers Markets this November.
Makers Market - 21st and 22nd November, 10am-5pm, The Box, Tavistock Place, Plymouth, PL4 8AX
