Laurie: Hello and welcome to our very first blog post. Today I will be chatting with Helena Jury from Flutter and Folk and I'm very excited to have her here. I've always loved art and illustration and since the beginning of Isle of Shee it has been a dream to collaborate with some of the many wonderful artists that I've found mainly via Instagram. One that I have admired for a long time is Helena and her beautiful work. A little while back Helena created a beautiful print and iv'e often thought how much I would love to wear it (I'm sure you would too?) So, the Soil not Oil t-shirt was born and today we can find out a bit more about Helena and her lovely work.
Hello, Helena and welcome to Isle of Shee. Can you tell us a bit about yourself and where your from?
I live in a little town on the edge of the beautiful Cumbrian countryside with my dachshund Penny.
Laurie: What got you into Lino cut?
Helena: It’s been quite the journey! After struggling to feel a connection to the digital printing process (and quite frankly wanting to throw my printer out the window one too many times!) I started researching
more hands on printing techniques. I initially started Silk screen printing my designs but after getting hooked by the lino carving process and finding it more practical for working in a small home studio space and I haven’t looked back since. Quite simply I love it!
Laurie: Where does your inspiration come from?
Helena: Nature, the environment and my garden are all places I gather inspiration on a daily basis. Whether it’s while walking in a local woodland or from pottering in my own garden. I grow a lot of plants from seed and I find it a very hopeful process. Creating my own garden space that both fulfils my need for a green
and flowery retreat while also providing a habitat for pollinators and birds is something I am passionate about. I have come to realise my wellbeing is interconnected with the plant life and wildlife
around me. It’s a relationship that fascinates me and often translates into my designs.
Another influence behind my designs is my mental health. I have suffered with life affecting anxiety and depression for as long as I can remember. As anyone who has experienced either will know, at
times it can feel like you could burst with it all. So my work became an outlet through which I can process what I’m feeling and hopefully connect with other people suffering the same way. I think mental illness can be a very isolating and lonely thing to deal and I
believe the more we share our experiences the better. In my designs I will often use people’s faces, facial expressions and body language in my lino carvings to illustrate a mood and express feelings that can
be hard to put into words.
Laurie: What inspired the Soil not Oil print?