This spring, we’re so excited to welcome Kate Miller as our very first Gosforth Nature Reserve Artist in Residence. We caught up with her to find out more about what she’ll be doing during her residency.
Can you tell us a little more about your work, and what inspires you?
I love being outside in the fresh air and taking long walks, and this is where all of the inspiration for my prints comes from. Living in the northeast, it’s difficult not to be inspired. Newcastle is a special city because within it there are huge parks and wild spaces where you can completely escape from the busyness and noise of an urban environment, and also it’s compact and so easy to get out to the coast and the countryside.
My prints reflect what interests me about what I see around me – this could be a landscape, taking in a beautiful view or stretch of coastline, or sometimes I focus in on something smaller which has caught my eye. For example, I made a series of prints inspired by hedgerows, and I have an ongoing fascination with rock pools. I even made a series of 12 mini prints, just 9x9cm each, of natural forms such as a single leaf bud, a snail shell, a crumpled oak leaf.
Recently I’ve started incorporating wildlife into my prints – red squirrels, curlews, red kites and wild goats have all featured in my prints, and this is something I’m hoping to explore further at the reserve.
For readers who may be new to it, what is linocut printmaking, and what drew you to this medium?
I first started printmaking 30 years ago – I took a night class and was introduced to many forms of printmaking, all of which I enjoy, but it’s always been linocut I’m most drawn to. It’s the immediacy and tactility of it – the feel of the blade cutting through the block, the smell of the linseed oil in the lino, the sound of the tacky ink on the surface, and the thrill of lifting the paper to see what that first print looks like.
Linocut is a form of block printing, or relief printing. In essence, it’s a simple process – you take a flat surface (a piece of linoleum) and cut into it with a bladed tool. It’s a bit like drawing – the tool cuts away areas of the top surface of the lino and the marks you make are like the marks made with a pencil or a paintbrush. However, in block printing, the cut away marks will not hold the ink – the ink is rolled on to the remaining surface of the lino block and those are the areas which will print.
Prints are made by hand and I love the fact that every print is different. Even if you’re striving to make several identical prints, there will always be differences between each one, making every print unique.
I think people tend to picture lino prints as graphic black and white images, but there’s so much you can do with a simple lino block. Linocut prints can be loose and painterly, they can be complex and textured. I’m continuously experimenting and finding new ways to use the medium.
The final thing I love about linocut is its accessibility – it’s perfect for beginners because it doesn’t require space or expensive equipment – just a table, a wooden spoon and a bit of elbow grease!
What interested you most about doing a residency at Gosforth Nature Reserve?
I realised that I was working completely within my comfort zone, making prints about things I love and places I know, showing them to the same people. I think it’s really important to push yourself to work in different ways and an external brief is always a good start. Although I live in Gosforth, I hadn’t visited the reserve before, so I was keen to explore a new place and I really want the new work I make to reflect this place specifically.
Working at the reserve will also give me the opportunity to engage with different people and understand what the place means to them. I’m hoping that when I’m walking and sketching in the reserve, people will be open to chatting and sharing their experiences about how they use the reserve and what it means to them – and I will happily share my love of printmaking and creating in the fresh air!
Has spending time in the reserve influenced what you’re choosing to create here?
I came into this process with no preconceived ideas about what I wanted to create. It was very important to me to get to know the reserve before making any firm plans, so my first job was to walk, look and listen. I have been happily exploring the trails, getting muddy, taking photographs, writing notes and very slowly improving my spotting skills! I didn’t know what I would find and what would interest me, and it’s been such an exciting and rewarding process noticing new things and watching the seasons change.
I’ve become slightly obsessed with fungus and have dozens of photographs of the most amazing specimens. I also love the colours and textures of the reed beds, and the constantly moving reflections on the ponds. I’m still unsure what my final prints will look like, but I do feel it’s important that there’s a nod to bird life in there. I very rarely feel I’m on my own in the reserve, I can always see or hear birds around me, and I’d like to reflect that in my work.
Whatever I create, it will definitely be site specific, inspired entirely by my time exploring the reserve.
Will visitors have the chance to be involved in the residency?
Yes, very much so. Part of my residency will include working with visitors and members in a series of workshops, and through this I’m hoping not only to spread the word about printmaking, but also to encourage people to engage creatively with the landscape. I’ll also be hosting a Meet the Artist event where people can watch me working, talk to me about printmaking or about the reserve. Finally, there will be an exhibition in the Field Studies room, and I’m so pleased to have the opportunity to show the prints in the location which informed and inspired them.
During April, May and June, I’ll be visiting the reserve regularly and will be talking to visitors about what they’ve seen that day and what the reserve means to them. I’ll also be making work on site (I’ve discovered that bird hides are wonderful places to sit and draw!), so if anyone spots me, do feel free to take a look at what I’m working on or join me in some sketching of your own.
Whatever I create, I hope that people who know the reserve will feel an immediate connection to the work and will recognise a moment, a sight or a feeling they have also experienced here.
Get Involved
Join us for a Meet the Artist event on Thursday 28 May at Gosforth Nature Reserve from 2–4pm, where you’ll have the chance to see Kate’s work, hear more about her creative process and ask your questions.
You can also take part in one of Kate’s hands-on printmaking workshops, where she’ll be teaching techniques to create prints inspired by the natural world. Spaces are limited, so be sure to book early by clicking the links below:
Tuesday 21 April: Seedhead Cards
Thursday 28 May: Bird Prints
Thursday 11 June: Landscape Prints
Finally, we’ll be celebrating the end of Kate’s residency with an exhibition of her new collection inspired by Gosforth Nature Reserve, running from Friday 26 June to Tuesday 30 June.