M.A. Natural History Illustration, Royal College of Art
Helen Fay's drawings are consummate examples of the possibilities of etching. The metal etching plate is the ground on which Fay employs a series of marks, gestures and techniques that activate the image. Thinly etched lines morph into the more heavily aquatinted shaded surface. The almost photographic quality of the etchings enables the images to teeter between tradition and the present.
My work combines my two main interests, drawing and animals. Both the activity of drawing and the subject I study are a source of never ending fascination. I have focused on various aspects of animal life over the years, primates, birds, curious creatures such as echidnas and tree kangaroos. Currently I am engaged in an exploration of the canine world, partly because of the sheer beauty of so many dogs but also because of their presence and dignity. I find printmaking, especially etching, to be the media I can best translate my drawing into a solid and dramatic image. I enjoy working with and into a material such as steel or copper, etching lines and tones - a surface that one draws in as well as on.
