New Talent: Artist and illustrator Charlotte Edey
In the latest in our series uncovering creative talent on Facebook and Instagram, we speak to London-based creative Charlotte Edey
Charlotte Edey works in a range of mediums – from prints and tapestries to ceramics and even concrete. “Each year, I tend to give myself a new medium to explore,” she explains. “I love seeing drawings morph as they become an object. Ceramics [is] a delicate process, while concrete was extremely temperamental and hands on.”
Edey’s prints feature dream-like landscapes and Escher-esque architecture. She often plays with scale – placing tiny human figures in vast beaches or giant buildings – and combines pastel pinks with darker greys and black.
“I’m really drawn to fluidity and wide landscapes,” she says. “Cities make people feel bigger than they are but a vast landscape shrinks people. I think it’s kind of sublime to be reminded of how small you really are.”
Edey did a one-year foundation course at Chelsea College of and worked in graphic design for a year before going freelance. She is based in London and splits her time between personal projects and commissions.
Her clients include the BBC News, TCO London, Gal-dem and Liberty and she recently took part in ad agency Mother London’s Great Women Artists of Instagram exhibition. She also created an illustrated window display with jewellery brand Monica Vinader for Vogue event Fashion’s Night Out and sells prints and ceramics on her website. “I’d love to do more installations … I’m [also] really interested in working with animation and projection mapping in the future,” she adds.
Edey works mostly by hand fine liner, pencil and watercolours. “All the composition and detail is always done by hand. I colour digitally fairly often but have started colouring in pencil and light watercolour washes for more texture,” she explains. “Commercial deadlines are usually pretty demanding in terms of turnaround, so when I am working on personal work, I try to take my time … and focus on the hand-drawn elements.”
She is currently working on an illustrated book for Penguin Random House that will be released later this year – “While I can’t give too many details, it’s very healing and comfortingly surreal,” she says. “I got a studio for two months in Lisbon to work on it, which was perfect, particularly as the book was very introspective. I feel like you can feel the warmth of winter sun in the work!”
New Talent is part of Inspire, a year-long partnership between Creative Review, Facebook and Instagram showcasing outstanding creative work across both platforms. More advice and inspiration for creatives using Facebook and Instagram is available atwww.facebook.com/ads/creativehub. You can see more of Charlotte Edey’s work at charlotteedey.com or follow her on Instagram at @edey_