The days have been busy – and exciting – at Pattern Observer, and as such, I have taken longer than usual to bring you our next featured designer post. Today, the wait is over, and it is my honor to introduce you all to the work of Katy Welsh.
What I love about Katy’s work is how it draws me in. There is a certain vibration and energetic feel to work that is so appealing to me. I find it keeps you on your toes, and that it is impossible to not desire continuous exploration of the patterns.
Katy studied at Leeds College of Art and received a degree in Printed Textiles and Surface Pattern. She was featured on Pattern Observer in her final year. Since that time, she has been working in the greeting card industry day-to-day, and fulfilling her other design dreams along the way. One, in particular, that brought her great joy was her work with a capsule collection with the British Museum, as well as designing the SS18 window display for Heals flagship store in London!
When asked about the work being highlighted in this post, Katy shared: “I’ve included a mixture of designs, a lot of them coming from my most recent collection, which was influenced by icons of the Greco-Roman period, especially sculpture and ceramics. I am influenced by many elements in my work – plants, fruit, and flowers, as staples – but I also find new inspirations as time passes by. At the moment, I am drawn to looking at interiors.”
Knowing the detail of Katy’s work inspired me with a natural next question. How do you go about your creative process? Katy said, “My work usually starts out as collage and then gets translated into repeat patterns using the wonder of Photoshop. I love to take things back into analogue and print my designs by hand using silkscreen whenever I can.
“But when it comes to the future… Someday, I would love to have my work made into a rug. I would also love to see some of my prints on clothes!”
In addition, a final bit of advice that Katy wanted to share with designers is something that has always worked to her favor: “Keep yourself filled up with inspiration and if you want to do something, you can be the master of your own destiny!”
Great advice, Katy! If you want to see more of Katy’s inspirational work, visit her website.
