Walk With Me: Catherine Lovett
Stories of place, memory and wilderness
Welcome to our collaboration feature here at Wild Quiet Folk!
Substack is an endless source of inspiration, a cacophony of unique voices that can lead a reader through the weird, wonderful and wild.
Here, I have collaborated with other creatives to bring you their personal meditations on place, story and wilderness - the heart of Wild Quiet Folk. This series is in an interview format, but offering creative prompts rather than questions - the freedom is with the contributor, to respond in whichever way they see fit, be that words, photos, drawings, anything that enlarges rather than restricts.
Our contributor this month is my very good friend, wild swim buddy and artist residency companion, Catherine Lovett.
Thank you for being here, and I very much hope you enjoy the below:
The last walk you went on
A celebration of season
I never used to be a fan of winter but living in Cornwall has given me a new appreciation of the season. I find winter inspiring, reflecting a side to Cornwall that is perhaps less often represented in images of the area. Winter gives me access to locations that would be busy with tourists etc…in summer, allowing me to capture the places as they would have been.
The things in your pockets
Mostly seaweed, shells and sand! I can’t resist picking up a bit of beautiful seaweed or an interesting shell. Not all of them make it off the beach with me but those that do are pressed and collated into sketch books and I use them as colour reference when mixing printing inks.
A place that feels wild to you
Mawddach in Wales. We spent two amazing weeks at the Mawddach residency in November 2022. A truly wild place where mountains meet the sea, rivers flow into marsh and bog land and woodlands and waterfalls surrounds you. The ever changing light and weather gave you a sense you really were living on the edge of the world.
A moment of care
When I swim all other thoughts clear my head and I am just consumed with the feeling of being in the cold water and sense of being immersed in the landscape.
A place that holds history, yours or others
I grew up in Essex and when I was 19 I moved to Edinburgh to attend art school. I was blown away by how much history the city has, along with a real sense of identity and place that I never felt growing up. Edinburgh and Scotland will always have a special place in my heart. I have returned numerous times over the years and it always feels like coming home.
A story you found in the land
All my work is drawn from the land in one way or another. I always sketch en-plein-air to create images rooted in the landscape, often sketching on the coast path or on the beach after a sea swim. I use my sketchbooks as a visual diary to create prints that evokes a slower pace of life and celebrate the joy of the simple things.
Catherine is an artist and printmaker living in Cornwall, where she designs handmade artworks inspired by her coastal walks and love of sea swimming. After graduating from Edinburgh College of Art in 2003, Catherine embarked on a successful career working in costume for film and T.V, contributing to productions from Harry Potter and Star Wars to Doctor Who and Downton Abbey. Her time is now split between film sets across the country and her art studio in Cornwall.
Instagram: catherinelovett.art | Website: catherinelovett.co.uk
Go buy her art, it is amazing. And happy happy Christmas!
I love seeing all these perspectives and answers, Bonnie. Yet another lovely one 🩶
Cat's work is beautiful