Amy is a third year Fine Art student at Edinburgh College of Art. Fascinated with ghost prints and the never-ending changes that occur during printmaking, she is exploring how mark-making and layering with lino can vary with the slightest shift. She is constantly inspired to make more prints, to try and explore as many outcomes as possible. Her first solo show, Bievenida, is a collection of printworks on paper and textiles inspired by the vibrancy and excitement of a summer holiday. Amy is drawn to meticulous process driven techniques and rich, radiant colours, and works with the aim of creating a space that feels welcoming and comfortable for both the artist and the viewer.

Hi Amy, thanks for being with us! Can you elaborate on the significance or symbolism of the chosen title of your exhibition?
Bienvendia means Welcome in Spanish, with the original inspiration coming from my family holiday to Calpe this link back to this felt like the perfect way to round off this project. I also hope this exhibition feels welcoming for viewers, the way I feel when travelling. Adding the Spanish titles to all works within the exhibition as well as the Spanish exhibition title added a level of depth, I felt like I was missing. All titles translate to very simple sayings in English for example, Papel Pintado means Wallpaper in English or Cielos de Verano means Skies of Summer. I titled all the artworks in English first, but I thought the Spanish titles added more excitement and felt like they paired with the works much better, bringing back through my original inspiration, as well as adding a little bit of curiosity for viewers.

How did you arrive at the theme of your exhibition?
The inspiration for this exhibition sprung from a family holiday to Spain during summer last year. During the trip I felt so welcomed and warmed by the surroundings from the colours to the sites, everything felt new and exciting, like it was waiting to be explored and I loved it! At the time of the holiday, I had no idea how far this inspiration would take me but as soon as the university semester started and it was time for a new project, I hit the ground running and out came this burst of motivation and creativity. I ran with this inspiration of the warmth and comfort felt when traveling and started collecting work, from sketches to pictures, anything that interested me, and it bombarded my studio to keep me moving through the next stages of this project. After finding the one drawing that was going to be my focus point for the rest of the project, the colour scheme picked itself, as long as it was bright and exciting, I was happy!

What emotions or reactions do you hope viewers experience when they see your artwork?
Although my artwork often sparks from some very specific inspiration, ones that I feel and am inspired by, I understand not everyone feels to same so even if you don’t feel as excited by traveling as I do or love country music as much as I do, I hope my art gives you a chance to enjoy the art world whether this be because you like the colours within my work or the patterns and movement throughout excites and interests you or maybe you have no idea why you like it you just want to look at, that’s all fine be me, in fact it’s all perfect, it’s exactly what I set out to do with my work. I want to give my viewers a chance to step into my world through my art. I hope you enjoy my art (but you don’t have to) I just hope it gives you a chance to stop, think and see that art creates the world around us, it can become a space. Art can make a space feel like home, like Tenille says, “home is not a space, it’s a feeling that you get once in a while”, I hope my art gives you a chance to step into the world I get to call home.

How do you overcome creative blocks?
My creative blocks, new projects and new ideas all start the same way, by collecting. From drawings to images, I collect and hoard for a little while and surround myself with all of this, starting within sketchbooks and the favourites make it onto my studio walls. This allows me to see my life on paper and without being overwhelmed decide how to move forward. I embrace the uncertainties of my practice and allow the discoveries that happen through this to become part of the finished work.

Which artists inspire you? Are there any non-artistic influences such as literature or music that impact your work?
A huge inspiration for this project is printmaker Ciara Phillips. Her process driven practice has allowed me to see that printmaking can be more than a development stage of a project, I can be a finished artwork. After visiting her exhibition Undoing It, I was able to experience the raw, enthusiastic life that radiates from her work. Ciara is a constant inspiration to my work from the way she shows the artists touch even through to her final artwork, as well as the way she exhibits printmaking, she doesn’t limit them to just being framed artworks but also experiments with how to use and fill space successfully within her exhibitions.

Alongside my artistic inspiration, as an artist I am constantly inspired by music and for me this is country music. Country music is like a community, not only for the artists but for the listeners as well, from the music releases to concerts and for me it’s a family thing. I grew up listening to country music with my family and even now from trips to Nashville, to going to country concerts together, it brings me a sense of home and comfort that I can always rely on to continue to inspire me throughout my artistic career. 

Although she doesn’t create prints like I do or paintings like other artists, another artist I’m constantly inspired by is Tenille Townes. Tenille is a singer/songwriter but it’s not only her music and career that inspires me but how she constantly inspires others. She opens her world for others to step into; she makes me and others feel seen and understood, creating a space for us in her world to go on a journey with her, allowing us to become a part of it. I aim to create this kind of space with my art, giving viewers a chance to step inside my world and see why I’m so motivated and inspired to continue to do what I do.

Will your next project be a continuation of your current style or are you experimenting with something different? Can you share a glimpse of your next project?
This project is very different to any others I’ve complete so far however is the first time I feel satisfied and maybe even proud of what I’ve created (not too sure if we’re allowed to say that as artists but I think its true!) This project feels more like me as an artist from the bright exciting colours to seeing my printmaking as final artworks, I feel like I can see my artistic style starting to bloom. This project and new style have brought me to this exhibition, my first solo exhibition, so this has given me a chance to see even more possibilities for my art and has given me a huge confidence boost to take me into my final year at ECA and towards my grad show! I’m not sure what my next project is going to look like yet but after experimenting with even more printmaking techniques throughout this project than I have before, I know I want to develop this even further to see what I can do with my art. Like I did with this project, I’m ready to push more boundaries and see how else I can surprise myself with what I can create!

Bienvenida by Amy Kelly runs at Six Foot Gallery until Friday 15th May 2026. Connect with Amy over on Instagram.