Grand Designs!

 

I wanted to recommend two artists whose work now features prominently in my house which I’ve recently been having redecorated room by room. One of the aspects I really wanted to freshen up were the wall hanging pictures. Previously there was an assortment of various images of different vintages whereas I wanted to have something more in line with the new furnishings. And that’s how I found two artists whose work I think is excellent and wanted to do a little to promote it in case you, too, were pondering over what art to put on your walls.

Basia Asztabska is a professional photographer and graphic designer trading under the name Basz Designs. I found some of her prints by chance in Brighton back in 2023. If you’ve been there, you’ll know The Lanes, narrow streets full of artisan shops selling all sorts of things; there’s even a shop dealing in medieval weapons! I found a shop called the Stanley Road Department Store. The place is filled with posters, prints and books. As far as I know this is the only retail unit where you can buy Basz Design stuff though the full range is available on the website (address below).

The first time I was leafing through boxes filled with prints, her works stood out for me being like nothing I’d really seen before. Mixing photographs with shapes- often circular- creates what seems like an elemental design. Colours you might not put together seem to make sense in these works. They come in various sizes from A4, A3 and even larger. While some of the posters do picture Brighton landmarks most are taken in locations around the world and blended together.

On the website of her company Basz Designs she describes her work as being “inspired by travel, nature, space, and contrast” and aims to “bring a sense of calm, feeling, and character into your home” They definitely do bring character and also a sense of space. She also says: “Combining my love for traveling and photography, I draw inspiration from various landscapes and moments captured through my lens. These experiences fuel my designs, in addition of contrasting geometric shapes ( I am especially fond of circles), clean lines, and a minimalistic aesthetic.” And I’m fond of the circles too!  Her work seems both other worldly yet reassuringly familiar at the same time. The wall paper I chose for my sitting room is a challenging design to match with art yet her pictures align perfectly in three different rooms in the house.

The other artist whose work I have on my walls is in Glasgow based David Fleck who is inspired by the area where he lives and also his wider travels. He describes himself as “a visual artist with an architectural background.” His pictures are densely populated with intricate detail either featuring stacked up buildings or abstract landscapes. According to his website his aim is “telling atmospheric and imaginative stories through my intricate illustrations.” The result is something that looks both modern and also historical. 

I first encountered his work in the Bluecoat Display Centre in Liverpool city centre, a shop selling art, sculpture, jewellery and prints from independent artists. I bought a print that is an abstract representation of Liverpool.  Since then, I’ve bought others, each of which depict cityscapes with buildings appearing to live on top of each other. This is a small part of his large collection which can be viewed on his site (address below).His art is also available on a number of similar shops. An extra reason to choose his work is that his studio and art practice is Net Zero.

So, if you’re looking for ideas to decorate your walls then I can highly recommend these two.

NB: For copyright reasons, the pictures in this post do not show full prints. Visit the websites below to see them in full.

Contact Details:

Basz Design Website: www.baszdesign.co.uk

Also: The Stanley Road Department Store, 54-55 Market Street, BN1 1HH, Brighton

David Fleck Website: www.davidfleck.co.uk

He also has his work on sale in art shops around the country.