Short & Few West Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Workshops & Supplies for Creative Folk Printmaking, bookmaking, cyanotypes and paper arts My studio is based in Ilkley, West Yorkshire
Short & Few was founded by Zoe Platt, artist educator and graphics practitioner. My education and training background is in graphic design and typography, and over time my practice has become more process-driven, with a hands-on and analogue approach to image-making. Alongside my creative engagement workshops and freelance graphic design practice, I am a qualified art and design tutor in the lifelong learning sector, with close to ten year's experience teaching a range of subjects across fine art, textiles, 3D design and graphic communication. I am at my best when I am doing creative things - whether this is making books or prints, or working with others and supporting them to find their best creative selves.
My mission is to: INSPIRE + EMPOWER + ENGAGE I am a big believer in learning by doing and making mistakes as a form of enquiry, an ethos which underpins my teaching. I love the buzz of seeing what people make when they are in their flow state and seeing where the process is taking them. I want to inspire people to develop a curiosity for what the arts can be about for them, and provide opportunities and learning experiences to get started and keep going.
Short & Few is about embracing the value that comes from being slow and unique. The things I make are a conscious rejection of unsustainable growth and disposable culture, and instead short runs and limited editions that celebrate and champion ideas and process. My passion for teaching and learning is built on the importance of sharing and curiosity, some of the things we can find ourselves forgetting in and amongst our busy lives and commitments, and the pressures of fast living. The words "short" and "few" often carry negative connotations, but I see constraints of smaller, slower and quieter as being fundamental in the pursuit for quality and authenticity.
