AN ARTIST from Whixall has had her work featured in one of Shropshire's top art galleries.
Ellie Cliftlands, whose speciality is wood engraving, has been invited to hold her first solo exhibition at Theatre Severn in Shrewsbury this month.
Wood engraving is a rare skill and there are currently very few young wood engravers working in the UK, as it is no longer taught in art schools.
But while she was studying for her MA at the Cambridge School of Art, Ellie was lucky enough to be mentored by the eminent engraver and illustrator, John Lawrence and to have had great support from expert contemporary wood engraver, Simon Brett.
She was also a recipient of a generous grant from the Society of Wood Engravers for her MA project, The Juniper Tree.
Ellie’s work is fine and detailed and is engraved onto lemonwood or boxwood using extremely small chisel-like tools.
The wood is then used to create incredibly detail prints, almost requiring the use of a magnifying glass to see them.
She has already exhibited at the Mall Galleries and Candid Arts Galleries in London, in the Ruskin Gallery in Cambridge and at the Bologna International Children’s Book Fair but says she is "really looking forward" to having her first solo show at Theatre Severn.
Ellie’s exhibition is at the FBC Manby Bowdler Gallery at Theatre Severn from December 2 until January 12.
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