Sue Scullard - Wood Engraver

It was lovely to see the wood engraving work of Sue Scullard celebrated in BBC1's Countryfile's programme about Forests last night.

I've purchased Sue's work (see below) as we are fellow exhibitors at Florum. I immediately recognised her style of work and knew who John Craven was going to be meeting and talking to before he said her name or the film revealed her face!

So - for those of you who missed it, here's some more about Sue Scullard and wood engraving:

• Watch the  five-minute segment about Sue and her wood engraving process on the Countryfile programme (starting at 13:05 and going through to 18:00 minutes)

I started wood engraving on endgrain boxwood in 1980, whilst studying at the Royal College of Art, and since then have been making prints for illustration, commissions and for exhibition.

• This is a YouTube Video of Sue producing a wood engraving. It's an expanded and more detailed version of topics covered in the BBC film (for those who can't get BBC - and everybody else!)


• This is her website's section on wood engraving

Most of the engravings are worked on small endgrain boxwood blocks, which have a dense and close-grained surface, so the medium encourages a cautious and detailed approach

• You can also see more wood engravings in works she's developed as illustrations for books. (The one I'm showing you is one such work). This is the section of her website where/how you can buy her work - you can buy unframed prints direct from Sue via email (typically for c.£75).
• I think I'm right in saying that Sue participates in the exhibitions and open studios associated with South East Open Studios (which are still finalising their lists for the 2017 season) so bookmark for later! (Felicity will correct me if I'm wrong!)
• This is the Society of Wood Engravers - whose website displays the variety of work and styles used by those who engrave wood

Lark Rise To Candleford - Vegetable Garden at Lark Rise
100x150mm, edition 250

White Garden, Sissinghurst - 100x200mm, edition 300

• Finally, you can see one of Sue's work which hangs in my home. I'm a huge fan of drawings, paintings and prints of veggie gardens and above is the engraving she did of the Vegetable Garden at Lark Rise for Lark Rise To Candleford.  I just love the great big fat marrows, cabbages and leeks in this one.

I've also got a print of her wood engraving of the White Garden at Sissinghurst (see right).

My plan is to continue to develop a collection of her engravings of great gardens of the South East next. More gardens at Sissinghurst and Great Dixter are next on the list!

Prices are very reasonable. Unframed prints vary but £75 is not untypical.

I can certainly recommend collecting wood engravings as a way of developing a collection of artwork by an expert which isn't going to break the piggie bank!