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Framed artwork

Artist In Residence – Mamucium

Mamucium have undergone some amazing changes during lockdown, we wanted to bring you a fresh vibe, fantastic SOLE food and beautiful decor. Enter our artist in residence Olivia Axson.

Framed artwork

Framed illustrations by Olivia Axson

We have curated an exciting Q&A with Olivia, to answer any questions and give you more information about her wonderful background and the inspiration behind Mamuciums’ artwork and design. From framed illustrations to a beautiful floral mural on the grand entrance, she has left her mark on the restaurant and we cannot wait for you to see it!

  1. What’s your background? – So, I graduated from Manchester Art School back in 2018, with a honors degree in Illustration & Animation. Left University and started working in the summer as a Social Media Manager / Onsite Artist for The Swan Hotel & Spa in the Lakes. It was a great job with lots of freedom to design what I wanted from funky door hangers to menus and key cards – it was a real experience. From there I decided I wanted to go freelance and start my own lil business expanding my client base! 

 

  1. How has your practice changed over time? – My practice and methods have changed dramatically! I remember only drawing with black inky biros as I thought it was the cool thing to do, oh how wrong I was. My style has never really changed; I have always drawn in a similar style, gravitated to certain topics / objects but over time experimented with the materials I use, the colour palettes and scale of my work. When studying my degree I used a lot of collage work, scanning physical objects and editing digitally on photoshop. This has probably led me to how I use technology today to create my images. 

 

  1. What was your inspiration for the Mamucium Collection? – Well for this project we had a strong brief and ethos to find inspiration from. Mamucium are strong believers of real food, food that is sustainable, organic, local and ethical (S.O.L.E). So with this ethos in mind it was a process of picking apart the chosen dishes from the menu, finding inspiration from the area, the building and fun aspects of the brand that we wanted to illustrate. I wanted the artwork the be simple, light hearted and of course colourful! 

 

  1. What’s your favourite artwork? – I don’t really have a favourite, my pieces are constantly swapping and changing to what I feel is relevant at the time so I suppose my ‘favourite” is different day by day. If I had to pick one it would have to be some my original sketchbook paintings, I even had them framed I love them that much. It’s hard for an artist to openly admit to having favourite pieces but sometimes the practice sketches are the best pieces of work. 

Beautiful and quirky illustrations that you can find hanging on the Mamucium walls

 

  1. What food, drink, song inspires you? – Songs always inspire me from the lyrics to the artist, their stage costumes, the productions, the melody. I take lots of inspiration from Stevie Nicks, Madonna, Cher, Debbie Harry – so many fabulous women from the 70’s / 80’s / 90’s. Even women in music today like Mirra May and Bree Runway. As for food and drink, tequila always inspires me 🙂

 

  1. Name something you love, and why? – Something I love and I think subconsciously has always inspired me are butterflies. I have always loved their symmetry, beauty and shapes. Butterflies have always popped up in my work and currently more than ever, they also make me think of my Mama and her love for butterflies. I always remember her drawing butterflies for me to colour in when I was little. 

 

  1. Who are your biggest influences? – Oh goodness, there are so many! To list them I’d have to say, Iris Apfel, Yayoi Kusama, David Shrigley, Zandra Rhodes and Dave Buonaguidi. 

 

  1. What do you like most about being an artist? – I love having the freedom to create whatever I feel that day. It’s also such a therapeutic process to illustrate my ideas and thoughts onto paper, often my thoughts translate into flowers and floral patterns or even bugs some days! I love sharing my artwork also, seeing peoples reactions to bespoke portraits is a great feeling, often theres lots of tears. 

 

  1. Where can I get prints of your work? – Easy peasy, all my artwork is listed on my website www.oliviaaxson.co.uk. It’s always being refreshed with new bits added most months. Prints are available as well as cards, gift wrap and the bespoke option. I’ll also be adding a few new soft furnishings very soon … so keep ya eyes peeled!

 

Thank you for having me! Big love, Liv X