About

I am a Shropshire-based wood engraver and illustrator.  I graduated from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, Dundee, with a degree in Illustration in 2016, after which I studied at the Cambridge School of Art , graduating with an MA in Children’s Book Illustration in 2019. It was in my final year in Dundee that I found woodcut printmaking which led in turn to discovering a love of wood engraving. It was the feel of the wood that led me towards these printing processes, rather than something like lino, which doesn’t give the same sort of resistance or even sound.

There are currently very few young wood engravers working in the UK, as it’s no longer taught in art schools, but I was lucky enough to be mentored by the eminent engraver, John Lawrence, and to be awarded a grant from the Society of Wood Engravers for my MA project, The Juniper Tree.

As an artist, I’m inspired by engravers like Harry Brockway. My own work demonstrates that wood engraving can be powerfully graphic, playful or gently lyrical.

I also love demonstrating the engraving/printing process – the craft skill involved always engages people.

It has taken me quite a few years to find my medium and while I enjoy drawing, painting and digital work, I’ll always come back to this process.

You can purchase most of my prints through my Etsy account: https://www.etsy.com/shop/EllieCliftlands