This print was commissioned by Edinburgh Printmakers in conjunction with the fundraising campaign to refurbish the new studio at Castle Mills. To celebrate the architectural heritage of Fountainbridge and the development of Castle Mill Works into Edinburgh Printmakers’ new home, two of our Artist Members produced specially commissioned limited edition prints for Friends of Edinburgh Printmakers as a ‘thank-you’ for their support.

The Leamington Lift Bridge was refurbished as part of the ‘Millennium Link’ project for the year 2000 and is the only surviving example of an electrical lifting bridge on the Union Canal.

“The lift bridge was an easy choice for me, I love to draw linear, architectural structures and the Leamington Lift Bridge is one of the few landmarks remaining in the ever-changing Fountainbridge area.

 

The background image is a photo taken of the Union Canal featuring the bridge in 1904, sourced from the Scottish image library. My print in essence shows the past and present through the process of screenprinting.”

Kelly Stewart

Biography

Kelly Stewart is an Australian-born artist living and working in Edinburgh. She moved to London in 2000 and arrived in Edinburgh a few months later. She joined Edinburgh Printmakers in 2001 and has been a studio member ever since.

Kelly Stewart joined Edinburgh Printmakers in 2001 and began to translate her drawings on to the screenprint process. Kelly likes to combine drawings with texture and handwritten text, to give the overall finished piece a rawness that you would only find in a sketchbook. Combining these elements in the medium of Silkscreen print, allows her the freedom and endless opportunity to combine a range of images into the print.

Stewart’s work has been in Australia, Ireland, Norway, USA, Switzerland and throughout the UK in exhibitions such as the Glasgow Institute of Fine Arts and the Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh.

In 2012 she was awarded Printfest’s Printmaker of the Year Award.