Lucy Stevens
Lucy Stevens is a British artist (b. 1982) who lives and works in Leicester, UK. She received a BA (Hons) and an MA in Fine Art from Nottingham Trent University, graduating from the MA course in 2007. Stevens’ body of work encompasses mixed media 2D works, site-specific sound installations, walks, concerts, and, most recently, sculpture.
She creates vibrant abstract portraits of avian subjects and rural landscapes inspired by ornithology and colour theory. Her projects often include working in collaboration with experts in the natural world, including scientists, bird-watching and ringing groups, museum curators, ornithologists, photographers, musicians, and bird conservation charities to develop a deeper understanding of her subject area.
Stevens explores our complex relationship with nature by re-interpreting bird conservation case studies, natural science museum collections, and visualizing animal vocalizations through a range of methodical techniques to develop a register of colour-coded symbols and mark-making.
Stevens has exhibited across the East Midlands and London, including a solo exhibition at Leicester Museum, and in London at The Affordable Art Fair and The Other Art Fair. She has been commissioned by The National Forest, Nottingham Castle Museum & Art Gallery, Attenborough Arts Centre, The University of Leicester, and Wirksworth Festival to develop new mixed media works on paper and site-specific sound works. She has also taken part in artist residencies in London, Leicester, Scotland, Brussels, France, and Sweden. Public art collections include Leicester Museum, The University of Leicester, and Nottingham Trent University.
Her most recent work in collaboration with Leicester Museum & Art Gallery explores creative methods for cataloguing British bird skin specimens. Her solo exhibition ‘Colour Coded Birds’ saw a diverse collection of bird specimens grouped together by colour alongside contemporary artworks. The bird skin collection inspired Lucy to create new 2D and 3D artworks that use intense colour combinations. Artworks included within the exhibition combine photography of the bird skins on display with Lucy’s signature instinctive mark-making, as well as colourful abstract wooden sculptures holding bird eggs from the museum’s collection, which interpret ornithological data.
Lucy has also worked with The British Trust for Ornithology and Leicestershire & Rutland Wildlife Trust to explore the effects of climate change on migratory birds. The exhibition of new work in ‘Chasing Seasons’ saw a collection of mixed media artwork informed by scientific research to demonstrate declines in bird populations and changes in bird behaviour due to extreme weather conditions.
Contact
www.lucystevens.co.uk
info@lucystevens.co.uk
@lucyjostevens
Interview
What inspires your art practice and keeps you motivated?
The natural world inspires my art practice and keeps me motivated, in particular birds and birdsong. I've been interpreting birds, their songs, behaviour, and conservation status since 2013. The way I've chosen to do this has evolved through time, giving space for play, experimentation, and failure to create a range of collections in mixed media, sound, sculpture, and work for outdoors.
How does your mission as an artist influence the work you create?
My mission as an artist is to create beautiful, vibrant, colourful coded artworks that can provide the viewer with a deeper connection to birdlife. For example, adding in an orange triangle to my artwork to showcase an unstable population number or a repeat pattern to interpret a song or a stack of acorns to demonstrate the Jay's collecting habits.
Can you share a key part of your creative process that helps you stay focused?
The key part of my creative process that helps me stay focused is my subject area. I'll always research a particular species before making work and I even have a spreadsheet with the bird’s characteristics on it! This helps me to stay on track when thinking about how to create a piece, including possible shapes and colours, but still gives me compositional freedom. I need some boundaries in place, otherwise, the possibilities are endless and nothing gets made.
What mindset tip do you rely on to overcome challenges in your art career?
The mindset tip that I use to overcome challenges in my art career is that if I don't get selected for an opportunity, then it's ok. It's just someone's opinion and it wasn't the right time or the right opportunity. What is meant for me won’t pass me by just as what I am seeking is seeking me. I think most artists are sensitive (me included), but it's important not to take rejection personally.
How do you hope your art impacts the world or your community?
I hope that my artwork brings joy and that it encourages others to create connections with wildlife, including taking time to go for a walk in nature, putting food and water out for the birds, or getting involved in a citizen science project.
