Printmaker

Hello, my name is Kim and I am a print maker based in Tenby, Pembrokeshire. I have a studio and gallery shop open to the public during the holiday seasons and more variable hours out of season. If you are making a special visit out of season, feel free to contact me via email to check if I am open. kimcarlow132@gmail.com

Relief printing is an ancient craft and for me this is part of the appeal. The principal of transferring a carved image from a block to another surface, to create a print, is beautifully simple, but quite magical to me.

For my ideas, I tend to take photographs on location and then create drawings once back in the studio, I then transfer the sketch on to the block and I start to carve. The carving could be days in the making, however I find this part very enjoyable and absorbing. Although the sketched idea is there, many decisions are being made as I carve. Once the block has it’s first roll of ink, there is always the anticipation felt of the first proof as you peel the paper back from the block.

The process of creating a print, through all the distinct stages, slows me down. I love what I do and I love the process of printmaking, to rush these things would be missing the point. I continue to find pleasure in the small details and the tactile nature of relief print, the way the ink sits on the surface of the paper, when it is transferred from the block, is subtle but more than a little bit beautiful.

I often work with a hand mixed, deep blue ink printed on to a soft white paper, as I like the graphic impact this can offer. With a single colour, the eye is drawn to the patterns and contrasts more distinctly.

I am from Derbyshire originally but have always found myself drawn to the coast and nearby landscapes, and have lived in various towns near the sea. My adventures to different places and subsequent prints, will build gradually. Pembrokeshire has become my new home and I am excited to explore this further, the prints will take time to develop so do keep checking in to see what is new!