Masterclass workshops in Devon with top UK textile designer

BARNSTAPLE, U.K. - Aug. 21, 2014 - PRLog -- An internationally acclaimed textile designer is to hold Masterclass workshops for the first time at her Devon studio. Multi-award winner Sam Pickard, whose stunning floral and moorland wildlife designs have sold worldwide, will be holding two day introductory classes in textile screen printing in October and November, in South Molton.

“I am very excited about these classes, and I am looking forward to sharing my skills with people who are serious about learning how to screen print onto fabric, who are enthusiastic and creative, and perhaps want to work towards setting up on their own. I have experience working as a university lecturer with large classes of students, but this is the first time I will be teaching very small groups. I am looking at a maximum of 5 people in each workshop, so that I can offer everyone plenty of individual attention.”

The Introduction to Textile Screen Printing courses will run on 16^th and 17^th October, and 20^th and 21^st November 2014. Each workshop costs £250, and will be held in Sam’s spacious premises on North Street in South Molton. Beginners are welcome. Some drawing or design ability would be useful, but is not essential.

Participants on the course will learn how drawings can be translated onto acetate, how colour separations take place and how to work with a silk screen. They will also be introduced to different dyes and finishes. “There is something so exciting about screen printing,” says Sam. “It is a fantastic moment when you lift the screen to see the print. I am hoping to convey some of this excitement to the people on my courses. Everyone will have the chance to create their own individual design, printed onto linen. So they will come away with a textile print they can use perhaps to make a cushion or something for their home. It will be a unique and original piece of work, which they have put emotional and creative energy into, and hopefully enjoyed making.”

Sam’s exquisite floral designs have won acclaim all over the world. Sam has exhibited at top shows including 100% Design, the Chelsea Crafts Fair and New York and San Francisco Trade Fairs.  She is the winner of the prestigious RSA Design in Industry Award, and the RSA Travel Award. Two of her designs were also short listed for the British Design Awards. Closer to home, she is winner of the Devon Guild’s Summer Exhibition President Award.

Her distinctive drawing style combines a bold, modern freshness with the delicate detail and precision of traditional botanical artists. She gains inspiration from her love of the outdoors, and her designs capture the individuality and personality of particular plants with a sense of tenderness and intimacy. Increasingly she is using the exact colours found in nature. Since 2010 she has kept a blog, drawing plants from the North Devon coast and Exmoor, documenting their colours and matching them to CMYK.

“I have a deep love of nature and am fascinated by the variety of colours found in plants. Each time I look closely at a plant I am drawing, I am impressed by the incredible intricacy of the structure, and the range of colours. My blog is now influencing the choice of colours in my screen printing.”

For more information about Sam’s textile screen printing workshops, and to book a place on the courses, visit www.sampickard.bigcartel.com

Sam is also holding two day workshops on Photoshop® for Textile Design, run jointly with her husband Peter Bishop, a graphic designer and an Adobe Certified Instructor in Photoshop®. These are aimed at professionals who want to learn about digital techniques used in textile printing. The Photoshop® courses will be held in South Molton in January/February 2015. For more details visit www.sampickard.bigcartel.com

Editors’ Notes

1.      For high res pictures of Sam's textiles, and Sam at work, please contact info@ndmedia.co.uk

2.       For more information visit www.sampickard.bigcartel.com

3.       Sam has her own online shop. www.sampickard.co.uk

4.       Sam trained at Camberwell Art College, gaining a BA (Hons) in Textile Design. After winning the prestigious travel award from the Royal Society of Arts, she studied wood block printing in India. Back in London, she worked as a print and dye technician at East London University.  In 1996 Sam set up her own business as a textile designer/printer, helped by a Crafts Council Development Award. In 2008 she gained an MA (Distinction) at Bath Spa University.

5.       To see Sam’s blog on plants and colours, visit www.sampickarddesign.blogspot.co.uk

6.       She has recently exhibited at the Cornwall Design Fair and will be at the Nourish Festival in Bovey Tracey in Devon on 5^th and 6^th September. She will also be at the Selvedge Winter Fair, on 31^st October and 1^st November, in Chelsea Old Town Hall, London.

7.       Press release issued by www.ndmedia.co.uk  Contact info@ndmedia.co.uk