Featured Maker // Emma Hardicker

Emma Hardicker
Artist and Printmaker

Emma Hardicker works as a printmaker and designer, producing vibrant artwork for your interiors. The majority of her beautiful work is designed and silkscreen printed at her home-based studio in Birmingham. Emma’s work is heavily inspired by nature and botanicals, from her walks around the Midlands and sketching in her garden. Her ability to capture the essence of flora and the spirit of flowers is captivating and her floral designs include an abundance of flowers; daffodils, tulips, lilies, hydrangea and much more. As a contrast, Emma also loves living in the city and therefore the harder urban surroundings also feature in her iconic designs. Her incredible Cityscapes series being testament to her wonderful eye for architectural detail.

Emma studied textile design at Nottingham Trent University, and went on to work in a photography studio to support her work as an artist, selling paintings through local galleries.

We caught up with Emma to find out more about her creative journey, how her business has evolved and her proudest achievements.

Where do you create?

My studio is tucked away at the back of a beautiful and well-loved garden. It’s surrounded by trees and flowers. No one would ever guess from a photo that this little hideaway is in the centre of Birmingham. The studio is based in Kings Heath where I am surrounded by parks. These surroundings give me the inspiration and freedom to develop my floral designs, and the city itself provides the spark for my urban printed landscapes and paintings.

Talk us through your making process from start to finish.

My main process is screen printing. After creating the designs onto tracing papers or acetates with pen and ink in the garden studio, I take them to one of the oldest industrial sectors of the city – Digbeth – to expose my design onto screens in a darkroom, using a light sensitive photo coat, at a shared studio called ‘Birmingham Printmakers’. I love moving between these two worlds.

Then its back to the studio with my screens. The photo coat has blocked the mesh out in some areas leaving my pattern, which I can sample and start mixing colours and building up textures. This element can take several weeks and the more layers and colours involved, the more complex the overall process becomes. I use a squeegee to push the acrylic paint through the mesh in the screen, letting the paint dry in-between each colour, until I have built up my entire design. I will then hand print a number of these and edition them. Once the edition is gone, it’s gone and it’s time to begin a whole new design.

This may be more screen printing or a painting on canvas or collage papers with a combination of both painting and printing. My styles are different depending on what medium I am using and how the paint is applied. But the one constant theme running through all my work is pattern and my abstract approach. For me, art should be an escapism; not too realistic and allows people to look at something in a different way.

How has your business evolved since the beginning?

I began by working the local arts markets selling work. I was increasingly commissioned to paint urban and country scenes and one picture, The Bluebell Wood, was reproduced by Transport for London as a London Underground Poster to attract people out of the city. This was an incredibly significant moment for me and gave me the confidence to set up my own business; making prints inspired by my surroundings. 

I now have regular customers, who are keen to make collections of my limited edition prints. I produce a number of collections; cards, prints, posters, soft furnishings and a fabric range. I long to one day produce wallpapers too, but for now this is plenty of work for my two hands!

In recent years, I have produced commissioned pieces for diverse organisations such as Barrister’s Chambers, NHS, RHS, BIOHUB and The University of Cambridge to name a few. Creating brings me so much joy and watching peoples reactions whilst they lose themselves in my work or evoke memories for them is so rewarding.

Are there any new ideas or collections you’ve been working on during Lockdown?

I have been kept very busy working on oil and acrylic commissions for a number of customers. Also, I have been inspired by my daily walks with my young son through our local beautiful park and I have created a landscape painting, ‘Highbury Hall and Park’. The original painting is currently for sale.

What is your proudest achievement?

Selling in Liberty’s of London! 

As a textile graduate, this was a dream come true. Liberty’s were looking to introduce some new floral prints and after being encouraged by another fabric designer to get in touch with them,  I was invited along to showcase my Four Seasons designs and florals collection. For them to order the work from me was a huge confirmation that I was doing something right.

Another equally proud moment was when I had my very first studio space at the Custard Factory. Going from shared spaces to finally being able to pay rent each month for my very own space was another huge achievement for me.

Find more of Emma’s work on her website & instagram.
www.emmahardicker.com
@emmahardicker