Julie North is a relief and intaglio printmaker, creating hand-pulled original limited-edition prints. Working from her studio in rural France, Julie specialises in the method of reduction linocutting, where a single block is used for a multi-coloured image, through successive rounds of carving and printing. After taking a weekend course in linocutting, a birthday gift from her husband, she became immediately hooked, and has continued to learn about this addictive method of printmaking through daily practice, following others, and experimentation. Julie also enjoys creating collagraph and drypoint prints, which are often more aligned with her love of drawing and sketching.
Flora, fauna, and the natural landscape are common themes within Julie’s work, which are undoubtedly influenced by her background in horticulture. After finishing college, Julie partook in a 3-year Higher National Diploma in Commercial Horticulture, at Hadlow College, Kent. It was here that she met her husband, and after graduating they moved to North Yorkshire, where she worked in the horticultural industry for around 10 years. She went on to work in one of the UK government’s science agencies, starting off as a laboratory assistant, to becoming a researcher in her own right, focusing on insect pests in horticulture and agriculture and their control. Julie gained her master’s research degree while here (through Newcastle University) before working for the UK government’s Chemical Regulations Directorate, as an ecotoxicologist. She later became a consultant in the same field in the private sector, before moving to France in 2015.
As a trained horticulturalist and latterly, an artist, Julie’s passion for the natural world has continued to grow, and now most of her work is focused on the beauty of botanical subjects. Living in rural France, all of these subjects are available from her doorstep. She describes; “A short walk from my home can take me into fields or woodland with panoramic views just a stone’s throw away – I am spoilt for choice.”
Thus, Julie is largely self-taught with no formal training in art or printmaking. Before she discovered the wonderful world of printmaking, she loved to draw, but felt it “lacked purpose”. She tells us; “Now, my drawing is an integral part of my printmaking process. I know there are quicker ways to create drawings and sketches, which inform the artist, but for me, the physical process of drawing helps me to get to know my subject – the folds in a petal or leaf, the play of light to give tone to an image – which in turn means my mark making is more intuitive when I start working on any given substrate.”
Julie usually has several printmaking projects ongoing at any one time. Often, a complicated, multi-layered print of a landscape, for example, will take lots of time and energy to complete, with longer periods between each layer, as the ink takes longer to dry. Therefore, she will have more simple projects running alongside, which she can pick up and put down in between. “I’m quite disciplined about my projects, setting myself various themes to which I can work in different formats,” says the artist.
Her biggest project to date was the creation of a botanical alphabet, for which she used the reduction linocut method. This project took four years in total to complete. For each letter, she chose two plants, whose names (common or Latin) began with the given letter. These were all created in two colours, a background colour, inspired by one or both subjects, and a second black layer, defining the detail. To celebrate the end of the project, Julie collaborated with a local artisan printer, who made a small edition of artist’s books of her entire alphabet, held within a bespoke dust cover.
Julie’s latest long-term project is based on botanical subjects and their symbolic meaning. She has restricted her palette to 3 colours, and is using multi blocks to create the works. Alongside this, she is currently working on a very detailed landscape in linocut, using the reduction method, which she expects will comprise at least 10 colour passes.
More recently, Julie has branched out into printing on fabric, and is sewing tablecloths, napkins, and tea towels from vintage French linen, which she then prints with lino blocks that have been used in previous projects. These items are mostly made to order but some are taken to shows and exhibitions for sale.
Julie works from her studio that was built from scratch by her husband, re-using windows from their farmhouse. The studio is located in one of their barns, providing a sheltered environment with views over the garden and courtyard. “It’s my happy place and is a very calm and tranquil space in which to work,” says the printmaker. Her studio is home to all of the usual printmaking paraphernalia, as well as a Hawthorn etching press, which can be used for intaglio work and her larger linocuts. Julie also has a collection of book presses, which she uses for her linocut workshops. She states; “Although the presses make printing much easier, I do like to hand burnish some of my prints. I have traditional Japanese barens for this purpose, which are made from stiff card discs, covered in bamboo leaves, but my most treasured are my glass barens, made by Thomas Petit Glass in the UK – aesthetically pleasing, very tactile and a pleasure to hold.”
As her reputation is spreading, particularly in her region, Julie hopes to become recognised in the printmaking world for her style and finesse, and one day find gallery representation. She is looking forward to continuing to explore botanical subjects with new projects in the pipeline. She is currently seeking a publishing house to print her botanical alphabet, and perhaps future projects too.
Julie concludes; “I find the whole process of printmaking hugely gratifying and feel that it is an essential part of me and my well-being. I am always buoyed up by feedback from followers of my practice and to have collectors of my work is such an honour – I very much hope to continue to grow and develop my printmaking practice this way.”
www.julienorthgraveuse.com
@julienorthprintmaker
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