St Cuthberts Mill : Artist Interview: Martin Truefitt-Baker

Fine art printmaker and painter, Martin Truefitt-Baker, a fan of Somerset® Satin, tells us about his creative journey and inspiration for his artwork, including his impressive wildlife reduction linocut prints on Somerset® paper.

Martin is a renowned artist working in Wales celebrated for his exquisite linocut prints. His work, deeply rooted in the stunning landscapes of the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) National Park, captures the essence of the Welsh countryside with remarkable detail and sensitivity.

'Kingfisher, Evening Rain' by
Martn Truefitt-Baker
Martin, tell us a bit about your journey as an artist and how you came to focus on printmaking?

I’m originally from East London but first moved to Wales to do a degree in Visual Art at Aberystwyth. My practical studies there specialised in graphics, illustration and printmaking. The course was 50% Art History and my dissertation was on Edward Bawden (I was lucky enough to visit him and his studio), so I had started to develop an interest in lino printing, producing a few small prints.

On graduating I did some illustration work back in London at first but there seemed to be little prospect of making a living (I was also working as a bin man!). I trained as a teacher in Cardiff in the early 80s and then taught in a Welsh Valleys school for the next 30+ years (Head of Department for 20+ years) to 11- to 18-year-olds.

I found teaching did two things at the same time, it honed my critical and practical skills but sapped my personal and creative energy.

Ten years ago, I was able to leave teaching, after the school was restructured and I started making work for myself again in 2017.

At first, I was just working out what interested me and what kind of artist I was (I’m still working on that). I live in the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons), in the beautiful Usk Valley, so the local landscape and wildlife have had a big influence.

Maybe if I still lived in London, I’d be making edgy metropolitan street scenes, or be more into social comment?

Quite early on I had some work accepted into a couple of important exhibitions, which made me think that my art practice was still valuable and something that was worth investing time and energy in. I'm lucky that it is now a full-time and successful career.

I exhibit regularly and also sell my prints online, which has opened up an international market. I still do the occasional bit of teaching but I try to keep that limited.

Another small income stream has come from my work being picked up by a few publishing companies. My print designs can be found on greetings cards and more recently a jigsaw and a notebook. These are all good advertisements for my handmade limited edition lino prints, so are worthwhile pursuing. In a way I’ve ended up as the illustrator I first hoped to be 40+ years ago.

'Bluebell Wood Fox' by Martin Truefitt-Baker on Somerset Satin

Where does your inspiration come from for your themes about nature and wildlife?

I base my wildlife work on the animals I see where I live and only the ones I’ve seen. It is as much about my feelings towards that animal and where and when I see it, as about its physical appearance.

'Swimming in Stars' by Martin Truefitt-Baker on
Somerset Satin

There is often a bit of narrative, maybe that’s the illustrator in me. I try to catch some of the magic in the way the animal moves and lives within its environment, as if you were there with it running or swimming alongside, the same size, rather than observing from a distance.

The time of day and the season are very important. A fox running through crunchy white bracken on the hillside, with frosty breath, is magic. Compositions of an animal isolated in a rectangle just seem a bit of a lost opportunity.

The landscapes in my paintings and prints are real places, some become more stylized than others. Simplifying or reimagining shapes, form and colours to make a good composition is important to convey something more than a photographic reality.

An edition of prints takes me around two months to finish, from first rough sketches, to numbering and signing (editioning).

Which printmaking techniques do you find most rewarding, and why?

Most of my printed work is linocut and most of it is by reduction. A single piece of lino is progressively cut away and overprinted onto paper several times, in a succession of tones, to build up the final image. Sometimes a layer can have three or four blended colours.

All of the colours and tones in my prints come from these layers of printing, which I think gives a cleaner, more graphic quality to the final image. I don’t fill in any areas with watercolour.

I occasionally experiment with other techniques. I’ve been making a few small drypoints and mezzotints recently. I’m trying to reflect more of the tonal softness in some of my painted work. It all helps to keep you thinking!

I’m also impressed at how well Somerset® works for these intaglio techniques. For lino printing the paper is kept dry to print, so there is quite a difference in process

You frequently work with Somerset® paper. What qualities of Somerset® paper make it ideal for your printmaking?

As I said earlier, my reduction linocut prints are made with several layers of printing (usually between 5 and 8). I use the Somerset® Satin 300gsm for my large prints, it is perfect if you have a press (I would recommend the thinner/lighter 250gsm for hand printing) . It is robust enough to go through the press repeatedly and to take the handling involved with hanging to dry each time.

The surface of the satin paper is perfect for many layers of overprinting and takes a clean, crisp impression, so there is less tendency to over-ink or to use excessive pressure. The inks I use also dry well because of the absorbency of the surface, especially the first few layers, so there is no need to be waiting for days between rounds of lino cutting and printing. The printing of an edition can often be completed in about two weeks. I tend to use White Satin sheets, as it gives a brighter finish when making a multicoloured design, I know others prefer the warmer white (Soft White), especially if working with a single dark colour.

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