Art Inspiration

The 1940's, 50's and 60's era greatly inspires my work! I particularly love the fashion, design and pop art culture of the Mid-Century period. The 50's and 60's to me captures a sense of growing optimism, hopefulness and dreams! 

The playful, colourful “Pop Art” style has always captured my eye! One of the most famous art movements of all time, artists were turning to “popular” culture for inspiration like comic books, magazines and movies, and creating new forms of art. These were exciting times, but highly criticised by the art world. Pop Art was a consumerist culture driving economic growth whilst bringing a fresh bold new look to art!

Recently my work has been influenced by the “retro” travel poster style. I’ve always loved the aesthetics and simplicity of poster art, particularly that of the art deco and streamliner 1920’s-30s and mid century modern 1940s-60s eras. The poster has a long history dating back to the mid 1800’s and graphically has always been a powerful form to visually communicate a message whilst being a beautiful piece of art. I’m drawn to the elegance, the balance, the precision and simplicity of design from these past periods. The travel posters from these times evoke a sense of adventure, wonder and optimism. During the long history of poster design, lithographic printing allowed for multi-colour design, however many artists limited their colour palette to reduce costs. Repeated usage of colour, both bold primaries and harmonious pastels give the art its simple appearance, whilst defined outline and pattern give a sense of precision and balance visually. I have a romanticised view when I look back at this era. I think the travel poster very much encapsulates a time when things were simpler and perhaps more elegant, which is why I’m drawn to the poster art of this time. I’ve taken design elements from this era and created modern art pieces which encompasses a new take on the long history of the travel poster.