Portfolio — 02
Graphite
MEDIUM : Graphite on Vintage Paper
PAPER : Handmade · Cotton rag
SUBJECT : Seasonal observation
PRACTICE : Since 2022
STUDIO : Bath, Somerset
02.1 — On the Practice
Botanical observation · Seasonal · 2022 — Ongoing
In 2022, I came across a rare cache of vintage Hayle Mill paper at a trusted supplier in London. The discovery led me to work exclusively in graphite for these pieces — no ink or colour, just line, observation, and a closer articulation of my hand as an artist.
Graphite allows me to study the subtle structures of plants and the traces of weather and insects, details that might otherwise be lost in my sumi ink work.
Having worked through that original stash, I am now in conversation with several of the few remaining handmade paper mills in England, continuing this body of work where English papermaking heritage and seasonal observation meet. The intention remains the same: to honour both the material craft and the moment it carries.
02.2 — SELECTED WOKRS
Chestnut
Hayle Mill Paper · 30 × 40 cm
DRIED HAZEL
Hayle Mill Paper · 30 × 40 cm
Rose with Nibbled Leaves
Hayle Mill Paper · 30 × 40 cm
Lime Leaves
Hayle Mill Paper · 30 × 40 cm
Whitebeam 1
Hayle Mill Paper · 30 × 40 cm
Oak From Skyline 1
Hayle Mill Paper · 30 × 40 cm
02.3 — Paper provenance
Botanical observation · Seasonal · 2022 — Ongoing
Hayle Mill, Kent — founded in 1815 and closed in 1987 — was one of Britain’s most significant handmade papermakers, producing sheets from cotton rag with a softly textured surface that holds graphite in a way modern papers rarely do. These sheets have not been manufactured for nearly 40 years, making them increasingly finite and irreplaceable.
The particular cache used in my practice came from the Brixton studio of Leonard McComb RA, acquired after his death by my paper supplier in London. McComb former Keeper of the Royal Academy Schools, whose work is held in the collections of the British Museum, Tate Britain, and the V&A. Hayle Mill itself had also supplied artists including J. M. W. Turner, embedding this material within a long lineage of British drawing practice.
"If one person smiles when they see my work it is enough, my life has had a meaning and a shape."
- Leonard McComb RA
02.4 — Collecting These Works
Original drawings · One of a kind
Explore my current collection of graphite works, including pieces not featured online.