According to Susan Aldworth, Edinburgh Printmakers may be the biggest printmakers in the world, or at least the biggest one she has been to. She told me this as we stood in the elevator going up to her ‘Modern Alchemy’ exhibition, which is being showcased in the building. It is one of the two on display here this April, the other being ‘Belongings’. So writes Lauren Beth Gray for theQR.co.uk…
Born in 1995, Aldworth is a visual artist currently working and living in London, who achieved a philosophy degree before studying print at Sir John Cass in London. Her work explores the correlation between self, identity and science, which involves elements of childhood, mental health, medicine and consciousness- usually incorporating lived experiences into each piece of art. This makes her work completely perceptible, where all viewers will be able to relate one way or another.
Susan’s warmth and passion meant I could listen to her explain every print, piece by piece, with ease, and she was kind enough to do just that.
Belongings
Her first exhibition, titled ‘Belongings’, depicts an array of clothing from the 1920s; it envisions the contents of her maternal grandmother’s suitcase during her migration from Italy to the UK in
1924. The ideas for Belongings stem from Aldworth’s frustration surrounding anti-immigration and migration policies. Being a 3rd generation Italian migrant herself, I think she wonders why it has taken as long as a century for there to be a sense of ‘belonging’.
I immersed myself in the installation, touching and reading the clothes, all of which were hand-embroidered with photographs, stories, and recipes. One piece of clothing read “15 million Italians left Italy permanently between 1880 and 1980. They were mainly economic migrants because of mezzadria and subdivided land over generations”
Susan’s warmth and passion meant I could listen to her explain every print, piece by piece, with ease, and she was kind enough to do just that.
Not only was my journey of walking around tangible, but so were the stories of the people in her work. Such a personalisation strikes an empathic bond that leaves you in the same mindset as Aldworth. Regarding her anger at the discrimination of those who left home, felt displaced and sought a better life.
At the end of the exhibition, visitors are invited to write on an imagined luggage label, expressing their personal feelings or ideas about how communities and individuals can better empathise with local migrants.
Modern alchemy
The concurring exhibition is titled ‘Modern Alchemy’, whilst different from the first, is completely magical. It stemmed from a collaboration between Aldworth and Dr Amanda Jarvis at the University of Edinburgh. Susan won a commission to work alongside her based on Jarvis’s research as a sustainable chemist on finding ways to design a more stable and faster environment.
Susan said, “I would call Amanda a green chemist. I found her work really exciting”.
During her time spent observing and experimenting with Jarvis, Susan ended up making a whole body of work, now known as Modern Alchemy. Best described as a ‘visual equivalence’ of Amanda’s research, Susan used the idea of replacing expensive metals, such as lithium found in our phones, with more accessible materials. Through the process of ‘etching’, a printmaking technique to cut and make designs from a metal plate, she captured moments of chemical reactions.
Aldworth told me how she was given the unique chance to work in the laboratory, merging her art studio into a site of experimentation. It was here that chemicals were mixed by Jarvis, such as Aqua Regia for Aldworth to etch. This caused unusual and accidental responses on the plates such as marks and colour – it is important to note that Susan only spent £5 on the steel plates, compared to the usual £70 plates, therefore she knew the result would not be the same. This utilisation of both facilities was a hopeful collaboration for both art and science.
Aldworth continued, “It was about seeing what art and science could do together; it was an illustration of science”.
When I asked if she could plan what she wanted to accomplish, Susan said “I can prepare the plates, I did not go in daft, but I like work that makes itself in a way, and I feel that a lot of this work was made of chemistry… I feel the process itself was art”.
It was clear that each print was not just art but was technological, with scientific reasoning behind each element. They were astonishing, some involved gold and white powder, all bringing out different patterns. I could see space and the ocean all at once. It was hard to stop looking.
Aldworth continued, “It was about seeing what art and science could do together; it was an illustration of science”.
Not only does Modern Alchemy involve this collaboration, but it showcases Susan’s older work of Brainscapes or ‘scans’ relating to consciousness, grief and what ‘self’ really means.
Susan passionately said how she is “completely fascinated by the human brain and consciousness”. One piece titled “Birth of a thought” was particularly beautiful, depicting consciousness in the brain with the use of etching to show the moment a ‘thought’ develops.
My morning with Susan soon came to an end; sadly, I wish I had spent longer delving into her life stories and experience. She made a point of saying how special this space in Edinburgh is for her work, and it made me feel truly lucky to have such a capsule on my doorstep.
Featured Image: Artist Susan Aldworth and her installation Belongings at Edinburgh Printmakers photo by Alan Dimmick
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