Laine, Championing British Printmakers & Cherishing Plants in London
Where is home and what do you get up to with your time in real life?
Home is Farringdon, London, where I live with my husband and our one year old son. When I am not looking after my son, I run an online shop called Art School Prints, which champions emerging British artists who work in printmaking.
My work day involves everything from artist studio visits, photographing art works, trips to the post office, writing newsletters or planning events. Being a parent and running a new business is a careful balancing act and often my son comes along with me to my meetings or gallery trips.
The rest of my day often involves cooking, a lot of long walks, trips to the playground and endless readings of the very hungry caterpillar.
Do you have a digital presence?
I do. Visit me at www.artschool.co.uk and follow at @artschoolprints on instagram!
What do plants mean to you?
Growing up in a city has often made me crave time in nature, so plants are often a form of adventure and happiness for me. That is unless I am forced to look after them and then it is dread.
Are you growing anything?
I have managed to kill almost everything that has entered my home, except for a pot of thyme that lives on my window sill and I am incredibly proud of that.
Is there anything you dream of growing?
I dream of being more green fingered and I am determined to one day have a garden full of fruit and vegetables.
Where do you buy plants/get your plants?
I have often bought plants and flowers from Botanique Workshop, a florist and beautiful store close to me on Exmouth market, as well as Columbia Road Flower Market.
Earliest memory of being in a garden?
I did not have a large garden growing up in London and so we would often spend time in near by parks, my favourite being the Kyoto Garden in Holland Park where you could often spot peacocks wandering around.
Kyoto Garden, Holland Park
Monet’s Garden at Giverny
Pick an artwork of a plant
One of my favourite artworks is titled Lilas et roses, 1882 by Edouard Manet, a delicate and unassuming still life, that was part of the collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller. During the final six months of his life, Manet devoted all of his remaining creative energy to painting a series of floral still lifes, depicting bouquets that friends brought to his Paris apartment while he was homebound. These touching images of flowers are both an acceptance and a celebration of the transience of life, created as Manet’s last days slipped away, which I think is simply beautiful.
Lilas et roses, 1882 by Edouard Manet
Do plants play a key role in the work of any of the artists you represent?
I am so lucky to work with such a diverse group of artists and often nature and plants are pivotal to their work. At the moment I have two works on the site where plants are a focal point.
Harry Cartwright’s Laying in the Palms which aims to encapsulate the relaxed warmth of laying beneath a group of palm trees, swaying lazily in the breeze on a balmy summer’s evening. Each tree, of which there are hundred in total, has been hand drawn and arranged, before being burnt into a silkscreen.
Laying the in Palms, Harry Cartwright
The second is by London-based printmaker, Ellie Edwards who creates food and drink-inspired linocut from her kitchen. She has recently made her second edition for Art School Prints of two very pretty purple and pink chicory leaves.
Chicory Leaves, Ellie Edwards
Art School Prints Event
