Meeting Geoff Diego Litherland

You may have read on the blog that in January we awarded a prize at the Nottingham open to the artist Geoff Diego Litherland: as part of this prize we asked if we could visit him at his studio, and chat to him about his art and career to gain an insight into the industry.

Geoff’s studio is located within the Nottingham Trent University campus (where he also teaches part time) in an old Victorian hospital – slightly creepy but full of history and beauty nonetheless. The studio itself is a bright white room full of interesting arty bits, and Geoff had even put one of his previously exhibited works on display for us to see. 

We chatted extensively to him about his career and practice. Starting with an art foundation at Loughborough, Geoff moved onto a fine art degree at Falmouth where, once he graduated, he took a few years out from painting before heading to Goldsmith’s for a Masters which he completed in 2012. It was great to hear that he continued his passion for art whilst working at a local gallery in Nottingham.

Because of the Open, we already knew that Geoff painted science fiction-esque pictures with twist of nature, a style that we were all drawn to and loved. Illuminate were also interested to hear that he painted portraits which also had a ‘space’ feel, and we were able to see these in a booklet kindly given to us which contained words and images of Geoff’s art.

 When questioning Geoff about his influences, we weren’t surprised to hear that he took inspiration from old science fiction films and literature – we even discovered that the ‘portal’ shape in some of his work was partially influenced by the windshield of the Millennium Falcon! Geoff informed us that films and TV such as Silent Running, Firefly, and of course, Star Wars, provided visual motivation, and some Illuminate members were even able to provide him with a little homework in the form of obscure French science fiction films.

Geoff also explained to us that nature and Romanticism have been big influences on him and we were intrigued to hear some of the history behind the art. The Romantic Era was a movement prompted by the Industrial Revolution, which saw artists and intellectuals emphasise nature, the imagination, and emotions in an attempt to escape the reality of industrialisation. Landscape art became popular as artists created ‘romantic’ versions of the England, rather than ‘real life’ topographical prints. On the other hand, Geoff told us that the modern abstract artists Peter Doig and Gerhard Richter have also interested him.

Illuminate all had a great time meeting Geoff, and seeing his studio and talking to him about his work was fascinating (even if we were a little gutted about not meeting his part-time studio friend, his dog). We are all looking forward to keeping in touch with him to keep track of his future projects, and will hopefully get to work with Geoff again in the future.

If you’re interested in seeing some of Geoff’s work the Lakeside gallery at the University of Nottingham has an exhibition on until Sunday 10th May 2015.