Masters of Craft: In Conversation With Flora Roberts

Inspired by the beauty of the natural landscape, the work of Flora Roberts is an immersive world of fauna and flora. From delicate decorative murals to contemporary flower paintings, Flora’s expressive work treads the line between traditional and modern.

We took the time this week to talk to the artist who’s work is creating waves in the interior world:

Hello Flora. Tell us, what does a typical day of work look like for you?

Hello, I’m about to start on a new collection of wallpapers for Hamilton Weston Ltd so at the moment I’m doing a lot of research and going back through past samples & ideas. My days are less structured. I find this part of a project so exciting, but there is a time limit, which will force me to focus when I need to!

What has been been you favourite project to date?

My favourite project has been designing my first collection for Hamilton Weston. I had more free reign than ever before & it was really fun to get some ideas that had been brewing for a while, out into the outside world.

We know there’s so much to choose from, but what inspires you most at the moment?

Florists & floral artists are inspiring me at the moment. Also sustainable flower growers. I’ve made friends with some of them & I love chatting about flowers more than I realised.

You mentioned that your mother is a painter, what was it like growing up in an artistic household?

I never felt like what I was doing was frivolous or time wasting and that was a great gift to give me as a child. My mum took me to lots of exhibitions & galleries so I grew up inspired & never intimidated by the art & design world.

Moving from Dorset to London must have been a big change, how has this move affected your life and your art?

I actually moved from Scotland to Dorset before that. Location plays a massive part in my work. The colours I work with in particular are really influenced by climate & hence how people live & decorate both themselves & their interiors.

What would be your dream project to work on?

I’d love to do another exhibition of flower painting in a place which feels special. I’ve really enjoyed recently exhibiting in Bloomsbury, London, at Pentreath & Hall’s pop up space. The garden museum in London? That would be pretty amazing & we may as well dream!

Where do you start when choosing a colour palette for an artwork?

I don’t think too much, but afterwards I realise that I might even have seen something someone was wearing or the colour of a building that prompted me to use certain colours.

Where do you start when choosing a colour palette for a mural or wallpaper?

Sometimes I’m given a colour palette to work from; otherwise, I base colours on furniture, lighting and flooring already in the room. It takes time to get this right. If the subject matter is more neat and graphic, it has to be planned carefully, but if it is more natural, the painting can evolve organically and often benefits from this approach.

What are you working on at the moment?

I’m working exclusively on wallpaper at the moment. I’ll be doing some more flower painting nearer Christmas time.

Where are your favourite places to shop right now?

Converture & the Garbstore is a lovely shop, but also you can see things on line. I like places like this where the products have really been thought about, almost like an art gallery.

If a student wanted to enter the field? What advice would you give them?

Try and figure a way of doing something you personally really enjoy. You might need a bit of trial & error. Get in touch with lots & lots of people!

Projects for the future?

More wallpaper designs. It is becoming so hard to offer something original yet comfortingly familiar. I like a good challenge!

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Check out more of Flora’s work here.