On Making: Seraphina Neville
I make abstract paper cut-out collages & screen prints. I’ve also recently worked on some digital designs for textiles. I really enjoy the process of making & for me the process is definitely just as important as the output!
I’ve always been making things in some shape or form since I can remember. I feel very lucky to have been encouraged by my parents with this when I was growing up, as they were both very creative. I became interested in photography as a teenager & borrowed the family digital camera to practice. I was also really into music & contacted bands I liked to ask if I could photograph their gigs. I sort of learnt what I was doing as I went along and I remember getting such a buzz realising that it was possible to be working doing something that I enjoyed so much! I have so many great memories from this time - we had bands staying over at our house & my parents would cook for them after their gigs.
I did Art & Design at college and then went to Falmouth University where I did an BA in Photography. It was at Uni that I realised I actually enjoy the process of making photographs more than the output. I found it quite hard to stick to the briefs which were usually to present a set of final photographic prints. I pushed this as much as possible and ended up making quite experimental & abstract photography work, bringing in elements of collage, textiles & video. After graduating in 2015, I moved to London and began working as a photography studio assistant and gallery photographer. I tried to keep up my own photography work as well, but it was when I went through a really difficult patch that I realised how important it was to me to make more time to do what really makes me happy.
In 2018, we found out my Dad was terminally ill and I travelled from London to Birmingham every weekend that year to spend as much time with my family as possible. My Mum is an artist and had kept lots of magazines over the years for inspiration and to use in her own work. She very kindly let me take my scissors to some of them and I started making collages to take my mind off things. I shared some of these on Instagram and the positive reaction really surprised me! I received some of my first commissions through this too. I started to realise that the more enjoyment I got out of making something, the more other people seem to pick up on that and connect to what it is that I’ve made. It definitely seems to be reflected in my work when I’ve had fun making something.
I’ve continued to make collages since then and also learnt to screen print in 2019 which is something I had been wanting to do since University.
I think a lot of my ideas are often from things I have subconsciously taken in, like the kind of music I’m listening to and what I’m going through in my life at the time. Recently I’ve been using much brighter colours and wavy shapes which I think are because I’m feeling optimistic for summer and dreaming about future holidays (when it’s safe to travel)!
I always start any new work or project by making collages. It’s my version of sketching and I really enjoy this part as it’s quite meditative. I love using paper offcuts from previous projects when I’m starting something new because I often find lots of new shapes and ideas in them.
My process is constantly evolving as I learn and I love how it’s naturally developing! I’ve recently started trying to combine my screen printing and collage processes a bit more. I used to make digital collages to use as positives for my screen prints, but over the last few months I’ve started working more organically cutting out my shapes in black paper in the studio and exposing these into my screens. I find doing things by hand like this so much more enjoyable than sitting at the computer. Colour is also a huge part of my work and I spend a lot of time mixing inks and doing colour tests before I make a print. I find choosing colours and papers just as exciting as printing the final image!
I think as much as possible it’s important not to force anything and to make sure I’m finding pleasure in what I’m doing. Even by framing the more boring bits like a tax return as a task which is allowing me to do something I enjoy most of the time! It's also really important to have supportive people around you. Things like podcasts can be really helpful too and I find the Creative Rebels podcast amazing, especially when I wasn’t able to go to my studio during the first lockdown and I felt a bit more cut off from the world. Being part of an open-access print studio and being surrounded by other artists has also made a huge difference to me as it keeps me feeling inspired and motivated.
Sometimes I find it very hard to know when to stop, especially when I’m enjoying what I’m working on or have a deadline I’m working towards. I’ve realised when I get too tired it’s often essential to take some time out and come back to something with a fresh perspective. It’s taken me a long time to realise that resting is productive.
I always feel quite vulnerable when I release work into the wild but I’m very selective about what I share and only release work that I’m really happy with. I recently heard artist Kelly Anna talk about how she always goes into something thinking that 50% of people are going to love it and 50% of people are going to hate it and that’s just the way the world is. It definitely helps me to remember that art is so subjective, my work will never be to everyone’s taste and that isn’t at all personal. But as long as I’m really proud of what I’m putting out and know that I’ve worked as hard as I can, then I feel comfortable sharing it!
Seraphina Neville