Details
| First Name | Shona |
| Last Name | Grant |
| Username | shonagrant |
| Website | |
| Region | Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire |
| Disciplines | Photography |
| Themes | Landscape, Botanical |
Statement
| Statement | My artistic background is in illustration and I worked as a freelance book illustrator for over twenty years. Seven years ago I changed artistic medium to photography having previously studied it as part of my college course. I didn’t continue with photography for long after college as I had no access to a darkroom and consequently much of my artistic expression was compromised. In 2014 I bought a decent digital camera and printer, so the whole possibility of processing and printing my own photographs returned. As a photographer I like to present my work in the form of artists’ books. I think perhaps because I worked as a book illustrator it’s a natural way for me to present my photography. Artists’ books are not ordinary bound books but handmade unique artworks in their own right. The viewer can hold the work, open it in different ways and display it as an art object. As children, books are one of the first ways we see the printed image and the book is still an important way for adults to view images. Time can be taken to consider the image and its context within the visual story. It is important that each individual photograph is strong enough to stand alone as an artwork. I take great care making and choosing the photographs, their sequences, their print medium, in addition to the weight of the book boards and design of the cover papers. The books need to be tactile and surprising. Sometimes I present the books with natural objects that relate to the subject matter to add another dimension to the photographs. One of my aims is to encourage people to engage differently with printed photographs by enabling them to physically handle them in an artists’ book as well as seeing the photographic prints presented in a more conventional way on gallery walls. |
Biography
| Biography | I grew up on the island of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides and attended Napier College in Edinburgh studying Audio Visual Aids Technology. A move to London followed for 10 years where I worked as a freelance book illustrator with work published by Walker Books/Sainsbury; Natural History Museum London; Heinemann; Simon & Schuster; MacMillan; Hippocrene Books N.Y; World Health Organisation etc. with representation by Juvenilia in London and Fraser Ross Associates in Edinburgh. EXHIBITIONS AND FAIRS Jun 2024 Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, London COLLECTIONS |