Our new Shipwreck print series is inspired by long walks on our local beaches, the flotsam and jetsam brought in by stormy seas or calmer tides and the rhythm and randomness of shapes, colours and materials found on the shore.
Our home on the East coast of Scotland is pretty special; a string of traditional fishing villages linked by a coastal path, tiny beaches and well placed pubs. When we moved here eight years ago we explored every cove (and drank in every pub) and I became fascinated by the differences between each beach on this tiny stretch of coastline. Some spots are strewn with green, blue and brown glass washed in from the breweries whilst others are thick with chalky white cockle shells. On the beach closest to our house you can find hundreds of soft fragments of broken pottery and the one five minutes further along the shore is scattered with deep blue mussel shells.
And then there's the sea-bleached plastic, tangled ropes, lobster pots, combs, toothbrushes and bottles! The Flotsam and Jetsam.
A quick lesson in shipwreck...
Flotsam is the debris from boats and ships that has accidentally ended up on the shore because of shipwrecks or accidents, whilst Jetsam is deliberately thrown overboard by crews to lighten a ship's load, usually when the boat is in distress. And to complete our Shipwreck series, Lagan is wreckage or goods lying on the seabed and marked by a buoy for recovery.
Our Shipwreck prints explore each element of Flotsam, Jetsam and Lagan. The simple rhythm of objects brought ashore, the washed out colours of plastic buoys and bleached greys of sea-salted wood, the heavy black tyres that appear after big storms and the mysteries of the objects that await collection on the seabed.
From first sketches through to finished print, we work in close collaboration with our suppliers, makers and manufacturers. The paper we print on is made in Italy, and made with residues of organic corn which would usually end up in landfill. It has a beautifully soft texture and the tiniest flecks that reflect the texture and grain of sand. Each print is hand pulled by our screen-printer in Glasgow, whose attention to detail and eye for colour is just amazing. Then back in the studio we sign every print, gently roll it in acid free tissue and post it to you to hang, frame and enjoy.
To take a look at the Shipwreck collection click here and to get 10% off your print order just add SHIPWRECK at the checkout.