…With Love & Fanks
In April 2024, I had an exhibition of my work in An Lanntair, Stornoway. It was a collection of my greatest hits in the 5 years of working in my studio 'LOOM Graphics' on the Island.
Exhibition icon
'FANK' [fahnk]
noun
A concrete and gate structure in villages across the Western Isles of Scotland where sheep are gathered for tagging and shearing. Often used as a social hub, it’s a real-world social media platform for Sheep Farmers of the Islands.
"Are you bringing Sheep to the Fank this Saturday? I have a lot of hot gossip I need to get off my chest."
EXHIBITION INTRO
I didn’t want anyone to know I was living and working on a rock in the Atlantic. As a freelance designer, I thought it woudl somehow be restrictive in gaining new clients.
However, after a year of living on the Isle of Lewis, it became clear that this unique location was an advantage. My client list slowly had more of an island flavour to it, and I was fizzing with ideas for T-shirt graphics.
All these paths lead me to launch ‘LOOM Graphics’ on 1st April 2019. I was going to shout about being on an island. Put a flag down. Move the design map of Scotland a little further North and a bit further West.
5 years later, here we are. Taking a moment to process what has happened with 100s of design projects completed and over 80 products in the shop.
This exhibition is a huge ‘thank you’ to the people of the Island for all their support over those 5 crazy years.
With love and fanks,
Pearse
To read more about the work, you can download the full exhibition Guide at the end of the post ▼
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LAUNCH NIGHT
Big thanks to Ralph Tonge for taking some photos of the launch night.
Thanks also to the team at An Lanntair for hosting the event and supporting my creative career over the years that I’ve been working on the Island.
