Sonja Ruddick

My love for making things and printmaking started in the art and craft rooms at school making models and multi-coloured linocuts. I went on to Great Yarmouth Collage of Art and Design where I developed skills in etching, screen printing, darkroom photography, sculpture techniques, textiles & typography, before doing a Fine Art degree at Loughborough specialising in Printmaking.

Teaching was always something I’d considered, so I did work experience leading printmaking sessions with UG students at Leicester Polytechnic and with FE students on Loughborough’s Foundation course.

After graduating, I worked a few years as a part time lecturer and as a technician in printmaking and photography.

I came to work at Norwich as a printmaking technician at a pivotal point when methods used in contemporary screen printing and etching were transforming. I attended training at the Centre for Print Research at University West England and Edinburgh Printmakers to extend my knowledge of these developments, to lead the team to adapt facilities here to more user-friendly alternatives for inks and chemistry. Increased speed and expanding range of imaging possibilities through use of digital cameras, mobile phones, digital imaging software and CAD technologies also brought and continue to evolve printmaking practice. The beauty is, that it all sits alongside or works well blended with traditional approaches too!

Later I completed a PGCert course at University Arts London specific to art & design in higher education. This experience informs my teaching, but also translates into the way the technical team interacts and functions, maintaining our quality learning environments through our staying actively inventive and intuitive responding to change and the ideas, needs and curiosity of students.