Joy Saunders

My degree show works stem from an admiration for wildlife. Through this project I’ve been
rediscovering the joys of imagination, and finding fun in the nonsensical by creating beings that are entirely in their own lane, undisturbed. This plays on our ignorance and detachment from the natural world through the depiction of animals seemingly engrossed in their own activities, with their own personalities. I’m guided by the process of printmaking, unexpected textures and the high contrast expressions of light, achieved with black ink. Despite said high contrast, I wanted to depict a world that is gentle in its unfamiliarity.

This exhibition also displays works made in collaboration with Niamh Mitchell, my long term collaborator who has encouraged me to venture into the realms of analog photography and experimental music.