Emma Jane Pendleton is an American born French raised illustrator and print maker. She studied print making at Leeds Arts University as well as the European Academy of Art in Brittany. With a passion for folklore and traditional printing techniques, her illustrations bring to life a dark universe on paper.
During her residency through May and June of 2025, her goal was to take advantage of everything TYPA had to offer. She printed a small collection of short stories she wrote with inspirations from her childhood mixed with Estonian folklore. Using TYPA’s paper making facilities and recycled material, she created bespoke covers for her booklets. Every element from the text to the illustrations were hand printed at TYPA using several techniques including copper plate, wood carving and monotype printing.
The stories from her works are based in local folklore and legend, rewritten with Pendleton’s personal flair. For this project, she decided her main focus was going to be something everyone at TYPA could get behind: cats!
She says: “From urban legends to ancient folklore, cats are seriously ever-present! And what better setting to work on a cat themed project than a studio with world famous printing cat Ruby? I’m so grateful to have been able to spend this time at TYPA and create a printed piece of art that I’m truly proud of.”
