Lucy Sugden

About Lucy

A creative at heart who loves the tactile element of making art I have always been drawn to textiles. As a child I enjoyed learning spinning, weaving, embroidery and lace making. Some of my childhood was spent in Turkey and Indonesia, where I was fascinated by Kiln, Ikat and Batik. Following an education in art was a natural route to take, and I very quickly chose textiles as my subject, specialising in constructed textiles and tapestry weaving for my degree.

Although I still enjoy many textile processes, tapestry weaving has continued to keep me fascinated, such a simple process but with endless possibilities. My material of choice, monofilament, a fibre I can easily collect and repurpose as most fishing line is a monofilament fibre.

Nature, the natural world and sustainability are important to me. My work is inspired by the beauty of nature, especially the beauty found in the small and delicate that catches the eye when out on a walk in the woods, pulling you in for a closer look.

I am fascinated by light play, and monofilament fibres allow me to explore this with my work. I enjoy photography and often create work of my weavings, capturing moments in time of play with light, seasons and the natural world.

 
Where and when I can I use old fishing line to weave my work. Any unused line is sent off to an angling society for recycling. I am constantly looking at ways of making my work more sustainable and repurpose materials as much as possible.

I work from my studio in North Hertfordshire which overlooks a garden I have created for my family and the local wildlife. I am a member of the British Tapestry Group, The Wynd Gallery in Letchworth and Herts Visual Arts.