Sam Groom, Printmaker
Who are you and what do you do?
I’m Sam Groom, a printmaker who mostly makes woodcut and linocut prints.
Where is your studio and why is it important to your creative process?
My studio is based in what was the front bedroom of my house. I love working from home because it’s so convenient; I can work early in the morning, late at night, in my pyjamas if I want! I feel comfortable here and really like looking out the window and watching the world go by. I think feeling safe in my space encourages me to take risks with my work.
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Does the studio space have an interesting history?
The house is a terraced house based in Hillsborough, so it’s quite ordinary in that respect. But I suppose a nice story is that when we were looking around houses to buy, I walked into this room, which was a bedroom at the time, and instantly thought to myself: this would make an amazing studio. It’s kind of what sold the house to us really.
How is the studio set up and how do you use the space in your practice?
So, this space has to work pretty hard for me. Even though it’s a nice big room, I have all of my equipment, inks and printmaking tools in here; I keep all my stock in this room as well as doing all the admin work in here. I had a sink fitted, got my printing press set up in the corner and my shelving unit to keep my stock. I have a large table for cutting blocks and another table by the window where I film my work, do my admin and gaze out of the window a lot!
Are there any tools or bits of machinery in your studio that may be of interest?
I’ve got my roller press, which is a wonderful machine that I use to mostly do my woodcut printing. I’ve got durathene rollers, which are great for inking up blocks of wood. On the shelves, you’ll find all of my inks – these are also very important!
