Biography and Artist Statement from Batik Artist Robin Paris

Robin Paris - My Art, My Inspiration

It is no coincidence that wildlife is portrayed in my batiks - art and the environment are prominent in my life. The two are brought together in themes that revolve around ecosystems, symbiosis/predation, group living and life cycles. Occasionally they merge with current environmental or social issues but the paintings can almost be relied on to include the smaller inhabitants of our planet: insects, amphibians, fish and reptiles, though sometimes you need to look carefully for them.

I was an animal and countryside lover at an early age, aided undoubtedly by my childhood in Shropshire. Sometimes in the summer we took a picnic up to the Long Mynd and played there in the deep boggy streams. I really cannot emphasise how much I enjoyed those adventures - which certainly were never complete without a leech or two attaching themselves!

It is probably a combination of the Shropshire Hills memories and a returning to my Cornish roots which brought me in 1992 to my current home on Bodmin Moor. But the five previous years saw me travelling, living and working in many parts of the world - the most influential and undoubtedly best time of my life!

I trained and for four years worked as a graphic designer in London, until in 1987 I guessed there was more to life. After travelling through Canada I spent two and a half years in Australia and New Zealand. As well as designing I had a plethora of other jobs: graphic design lecturer, cycle courier, national parks worker, arts festival worker and the inevitable fruit picker. When not working, I spent time cycle touring or in the wildernesses of the numerous national parks. It was at this time, in the late 1980s, that I began to draw and paint seriously. Both countries have provided me with inspiration lasting to this day, not just from their stunning landscapes and wildlife but also from their indigenous cultures - both traditional and contemporary Aboriginal and Maori.

But it was in Malaysia in 1990 that I discovered my destiny: batik. In the east coast village of Cherating that became my home for eighteen months were several batik workshops, and 'having a go' at the Malaysian national artform soon proved irresistible. I tried to stay away from the workshops. I knew I'd be addicted and it would have upset my travel plans. However, I did continue on my travels to northeast Thailand but six weeks later was back in Cherating, where I began an intense period of batik experimentation and production.

I returned to Britain in 1992 for an exhibition in London of Malaysian landscape batiks, sponsored by Tourism Malaysia. At the same time I set up my studio in the North Cornwall village of Five Lanes where I still live and work. I've since exhibited throughout the Westcountry, and in the West Midlands, London, Scotland, Germany, Belgium and the US in solo, two person or group shows.

The winter of 98-99 took me back to northeast Thailand and for the first time to Laos. The three months were intentionally a painting trip, but graduated into more of an ideas gathering time. Mostly I was travelling in the rice and fruit growing areas along the Mekong River, but also 'inland' to Ban Chiang, an archaeological World Heritage Site, and into the stunning Phu Kradung National Park in Thailand. In Laos I was enraptured by the amazingly beautiful Vang Vieng area - one of those places you never want to leave!

The backbone of my most recent work comes from this visit to Southeast Asia. Between 1998 and 2003 I also completed a series of batiks inspired by water movement in Bodmin Moor's streams and rivers - their colour, texture, pattern and wildlife. This culminated in a show 'Streams and Pools of Bodmin Moor', exhibited in Camelford, Cornwall in 2003, and the Royal Cornwall Hospital, Truro, Cornwall in 2004. One of the batiks 'Source of the Fowey' was exhibited in Belgium in the 2003 international batik show "Art in Motion".

In 1999 my batik techniques evolved dramatically. Inspired by the resourcefulness of Southeast Asians, I began utilising scrap, found and homemade tools for the application of wax, which give possibilities for making textures and marks absolutely unobtainable with the traditional canting tool or a brush. Batik suddenly became a newly invented adventure! New approaches are still unfolding, I'm glad to find.

I've run batik workshops since 1996 for adults and in schools and community contexts, usually incorporating wildlife, cultural or environmental themes. They include environmental art days, banner making, and retreats for fellow batik artists. I also give talks on batik - mine, other batik artists, and what makes us tick. My aspiration is no different from with my own work: to enable people to enjoy, engage and be inspired by the natural world around us while experiencing the fun and buzz of batik.

In 2006 I completed a two year part-time PGCE (postgraduate certificate in education) in post-compulsory education at Truro College in Cornwall. Somewhat unexpectedly but not surprisingly much of my studying was in sustainability education, especially ecological literacy. In turn this led me to investigate sustainability issues within my own practice. These are ongoing and documented in my blog Sustainable Batik.

Resumé

top