Diana Fenney
My original training in art was as a lithographer printing with stone and this influenced much of my later work in linocuts and silkscreen printing. I only ‘discovered’ batik in recent years. However, printing is an excellent medium to form a basis for batik. Thinking in layers of colour and working from light tones to dark, with the wax giving no chance of correction, gives the work a freedom; mistakes have to be endured! Batik also yields so many delightful and unexpected results which are often exciting.
Latterly I have been trying to develop techniques with batik, using a wider range of materials, particularly papers of all kinds. Thin Asian papers are hard to control, but when finally waxed have a transparency which gives the mounted work a luminous effect, much like stained glass.
As a member of the Batik Guild, I exhibit regularly throughout Britain, as well as with other societies. I am accepted regularly in the Vivartis annual Arts Festival in Surrey. I have also had work accepted in several London Galleries, Central Hall with the SWA. Lauder House, Highgate N6 and Alexandra Palace: also in Stafford, Swansea, Ely, Harrogate, Dublin, Edinburgh and other cities including a recently lottery-funded travelling exhibition. I have also been invited to exhibit with Yvonne Art at the Guildford Mill Studio.
My work sells regularly through these exhibitions and is now in many other countries including USA, France, Germany and Holland.
I regularly give demonstrations of batik to art societies, working with paper, wax and dyes. I also run workshops in my studio.
The roof of my home is my studio and working among trees, squirrels and birds is blissful.
