Fiona Cadwallader

Art Hub Studios: Print Hub Printmaking Prize 2020

ARTIST STATEMENT

My work finds its place in the English imaginative tradition which connects symbolic landscapes with an apprehension of the divine, questioning the frequent suppression or dismissal of the spiritual side of human nature, and making a claim for a strong connection between the spiritual and the natural world. The nature poetry of both Alice Oswald and John Clare exerts a powerful influence on my relationship with the landscape. Drawing is fundamental to my practice. I work in lithography, etching and laser engraving, sometimes in purely visionary scenes, but often using the local Kent landscape as my setting. My most recent theme has been the portrayal of the figure within the landscape, with particular reference to the Christian story. My prints often use symmetry to reflect my perception of the fundamental order and beauty of the world.  Making these pieces is a consciously slow and meditative process – and my work invites the viewer to enjoy reflection and contemplation, in a climate where these opportunities are often overlooked.

My work is chiefly influenced by other figurative artists with an interest in Christianity: Odilon Redon inspires me by his dreamy atmospheres and for his chiaroscuro depths of black; Samuel Palmer with his vision of an idealised countryside where man and nature are in harmony: William Blake for his graceful figures and sense of the eternal drama being played out between heaven and earth; and Roger Wagner most of all, for his intellectual coherence and for his quiet but insistent demonstration that Biblical narratives retain their significance in Western European art in the 21^st century. 

Instagram: @fionacadwallader

Email: fiona@cadwallader.co.uk

Website: www.cadwallader.co.uk