CREATIVE OF THE MONTH – Feb 2022

The artist screenprinting the third issue of SPUD the zine.

Rachel

Akerman

Rachel is a creative designer with a degree in illustration from Falmouth University.

“My creative practice varies hugely in form, ranging from commercial illustration to site specific design and ceramics. I studied Illustration at Falmouth University graduating in 2017.

Since then I have freelanced in illustration and design work along side roles as school Creative Technician’s and a Window Display Designer. I moved back to Somerset last year after spending 5 years living on the south coast of Cornwall. I take a lot of inspiration from the coast and the outdoors. I am also one third of SPUD collaborative, a trio in a long distance illustrationship making zines and other printed goods.

Pictured ahead: Yeovil Art Space Wellbeing Activity Booklet, 2022 – Digital illustration and design

Pictured: Pacific Coast Trail, Pencil and Digital map and spot illustrations for ‘Rolling Home Magazine’ & SPUD zine.

In September last year I created a mural with Yeovil Art Space for the CAHM’s assessment room at Yeovil District Hospital. We worked with a small group of young people to come up with ideas for the design that would create acalming presence for a range of ages. The pastel shapes where cut out by the workshop participants and layered my illustrations over
the top. I’ve worked on a few other projects with YAS including the Front Yard Fest and most recently the new Wellbeing Activity Booklet.

Pictured: Yeovil Hospital CAHM’s Mural, 2021 – Collage and digital illustration.

Show Off Ceramics, 2021 – Collage and coloured pencil

Since visiting the Met Museum in New York on a University trip I have been drawn to decorative ceramics and now whenever I go to London museums I love to sit and draw them. I like the objects themselves but also how they often tell stories with decoration especially the Greek vases. This is an idea I have been exploring through drawing, collage and more recently ceramics. Through my work as an Art Technician I have overseen setting up a new ceramics studio, knowing very little about the process I’ve had to learn
along the way and this has really fed into my own work. Cornish Myths have inspired my most recent work illustrating onto tiles and wonky vases (both thrown and hand-built) using sgraffito to carve into contrasting slips.

Pictured: Cornish Myth tiles in process, Terracotta and slip.