As Milton Keynes Arts Week approaches (24 September - October 2), Total MK is taking a closer look at some of the creatives who are showing out at the event, and today’s focus is on printmaker Helen Taylor…
Name: Helen Taylor
Works in/media type(s)
I am a printmaker and am currently working mainly with relief prints, this lets me make large scale, colourful more blocky images than say etching for example, this style suits the images I'm making right now which are landscapes mainly but also flowers and pretty much anything I see that inspires me.
What fuels your creativity?
I get out and about round my area as much as I can and find the landscape of MK really inspiring, particularly the contrast between the quite urban layout with the fantastic parks, trees and open spaces. I recently visited MK museum and was really inspired by some of their exhibits so will definitely be making some prints inspired by my visit, so watch out for those later in the year.
The piece of work you have produced that you are most proud of, and why
I can't really answer this because once I have completed a piece of work I usually see straight away how I could do it better and want to move onto the next one.
My recent tree cathedral prints have pleased me however, because they have been really popular with people.
Someone purchased one as a gift for a relative who's wife had passed away recently and is remembered in the green burial ground at the Tree cathedral. He was very moved by my print and visited my studio to meet me, that was a sad but inspirational experience.
If you could invite three artists, living or dead, to create a masterpiece with, who would you choose and why?
I would invite Frida Kahlo because I love her work, and she had an amazingly interesting life. Georgia O’Keefe because she used flower imagery in her work to represent ideas and Cornelia Parker because she makes inspiring and thought provoking installations.
The plug: Tell is what you'll be doing, showing or selling during MK Arts Week and who it will appeal to...
Recently I took part in Bucks Open Studios which was a brilliant experience, lots of people visited my studio, and I really enjoyed chatting about my art, my inspiration and how I produce my prints.
I am now taking part in Mk Arts Week, and it would be great to see some of the many people I have worked with as an artist in MK, teaching children and adults, running arts workshops and at MK Hospital.
My main interest and inspiration in my art has always been the natural world and living forms. I am especially interested in trees and plants. I usually work in printmaking, ranging from etching to relief on woodblock and Lino.
Recently I have focussed on landscape, and I am now working on prints relating to the area near where I live in MK, particularly the Tree Cathedral which I think embodies all that is great about living in our beautiful green city.
If you want to visit Helen's studio, see her work or get in touch with her, click here
www.facebook.com/helentaylorArt/
Studio is at 18 Kindleton, Great Linford, Milton Keynes MK14 5EA
Opening times
24th September – 2nd October
Saturdays 11-3
Sundays 11-3
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
10-4
Closed Mondays and Fridays
For more information about MK Arts Week click here
