FIDA Award Feature
Gill Wright A Folklore epiphany “It was like an epiphany. Fashion was the obvious subject of choice but it’s the mood of the subject that inspires me. I could represent a fabric in the most perfect way possible but if the eyes are not right then it goes in the bin or gets sliced up for a collage.” This Page Manon FIDA winner - Blue ink on Paper
When did you first get into drawing? As soon as I could hold a crayon and throughout my childhood. I always loved drawing eyes. After studying A Levels in Art and Stage/Costume Design, I went to The Northern School of Art and fell in love with life drawing classes.
Why did you choose to make fashion part of your inspiration? I specialised in fashion design before going on to the University of Northumbria at Newcastle to complete a Fashion Design BA(Hons) and worked as a designer for about ten years until jobs in my area became less and less. Stepping across into graphic design meant that I hardly drew at all for about the next fifteen years!
It was only when recession hit that I decided to go back to my fashion roots and become a freelance illustrator. It was like an epiphany. Fashion was the obvious subject of choice but it’s the mood of the subject that inspires me. I could represent
120
FIDA . The Fashion Art & Drawing Magazine
a fabric in the most perfect way possible but if the eyes are not right then it goes in the bin or gets sliced up for a collage.
What is your particular working day as a creative? No two days are the same. Whilst working on gallery pieces or my own prints I can be flexible with time or how I work, so I could be painting an oversized image pinned on a wall or at my studio desk, sometimes working late into the evening. When working on commissions I’m more likely to end up sitting at my Mac rounding off with digital work in which case I always try to stick to nine to five so that I can price work more accurately. What tools do you use when creating your images? Charcoal sticks, brushes, watercolour pencils, spatulas, scissors, make-up sponges, my fingers – you name it! I love to experiment. I usually work on paper and sometimes canvas. If I have a digital project then I use a combination of Ai and Ps.
