Liz Corley Art Oxford
Indie Oxford Interviews

Indie Oxford Interview: Liz Corley Art

By May 11, 2023No Comments

Liz from Liz Corley Art, based in West Oxfordshire, shares her journey from secondary school teacher to branching out to explore her own artistic adventure, and the importance of nature, far beyond just inspiration. >>

Liz Corley Art

How did Liz Corley art get started?

LCA started after I was dabbling at home and created some artwork and put it onto Facebook. I was surprised when friends and family started asking if they were for sale. Then I had some ask if I could create commissions for them and the business organically grew from there! I had always wanted to start my own art business and the positivity received from social media about my artwork gave me the confidence to start. My (now) husband built me a studio in the garden to work away from the house and our 4 children and LCA was born!

I then entered the Blenheim Palace start-up competition for entrepreneurs and was chosen as a finalist! This really gave me the drive to develop LCA.

The transition from secondary school teacher to branching out on your own adventure

Teaching art for over 20 years has given me the skills to turn my hand to any medium in art, making me adaptable and inventive in concepts and ideas. Using my skill set to start my own business allowed me to develop a wide range of artwork, keeping the products fresh and varied and reaching a wider audience.

There is nothing quite like seeing your artwork turned into products and then seeing these in shops and watching the public buy them. It is so motivational!

Liz Corley Art candle board

Art inspired by the Cotswolds, nature and the British countryside. But, nature is more than just inspiration

Moving from West London 17 years ago I was struck by the beauty of my new surroundings. From initially capturing nature in my work I soon realised the importance of conservation and protecting the countryside. With this in mind, LCA products are sustainable as much as possible and my wood artwork uses reclaimed wood. I spent a long time researching the right varnish to protect the wood art from the elements whilst being environmentally friendly. My chopping boards and platters are all made from bamboo, which is so much better for the environment as it is fast growing unlike hardwoods. My tea light holders are made from English oak and I use a local independent sawmill for this wood and buy their offcuts which would be wasted otherwise. I am also a supporter of bees; and as so many of my products contain bees (my signature design) I have been supporting local honey producers and creating bee hampers which have my bee products and small batch honey created within 10 miles of me by tiny independent honey farms.
I invested in the machines and equipment to print my own products and this means I have full control of the process to limit my carbon footprint.
Hand Painted Bamboo Chopping Board Liz Corley Art

Your creativity stretches across many mediums, from pencil to acrylics.  Do you have a favourite?

That’s really hard to choose as I’ve taught all mediums for over 20 years, but if I had to I think dry media is my favourite. So pencil, coloured pencils and biro are the materials I naturally gravitate to. I am planning on expanding my biro art this year and introducing them to products as they have proved so popular!

Why did you choose a bee as your signature design?

The bee was the first artwork I created and the design that gained so much attention when I initially put my work onto social media, so it has a very special place in my heart. Bees are also becoming endangered and currently are still abundant in the Cotswolds so raising their profile is important to me.
Also, the bee sums up LCA perfectly, as they are hard working, determined, busy creatures and that certainly feels like me when I am juggling teaching, running LCA and 4 children!
Liz Corley Art tealight

It must feel great to have your art stocked by shops.  Where can people find your beautiful artwork?

There is no feeling like it! It makes all the hard work feel so worth it when you see your products in shops!
You can find LCA products locally in Cotswolds Glass & Crafts in Burford, The Crafters Emporium in Faringdon, Bippity Boo in Chipping Norton and Cogges Manor Farm in Witney. Wider afield you can also find my products in Clovelly visitors centre in Devon and Juniper shops. I have also just won the Theo Paphitis SBS award which has been fantastic and will help open more doors for my business.
Liz Corley Art lavender

What does the future hold for Liz Corley Art?

I have so many plans and it can be hard not to rush, but to pace myself so the business grows organically.

I will be expanding the wholesale side this year and going into more shops. You can also find me at markets throughout the year and I will post where on my social media sites.

I have just launched a new area of LCA called ‘Paw Prints’ specialising in pet commissions and putting the artwork onto products and am launching this at Millets Farm Dog Show on 22nd April.

I also have plans to help other artists as I found getting very small runs of products printed nearly impossible when I was starting out so I invested in the equipment to do this myself. I will offer a bespoke service to other artists for no minimum printing orders on products and will be launching this in the summer.

Finally, I will be launching my biro products soon, so lots of exciting plans ahead for 2023!

Rosie Jacobs

Rosie Jacobs

I’m really passionate about Independent Oxford and supporting and promoting independent businesses in Oxfordshire. Indie businesses are the life blood of our towns, cities and communities, but they need support to survive and thrive. Creating a network that provides a space for indies to find peer support, knowledge and information is so important, and means businesses are far more likely to continue. Supporting indies means a stronger local economy and a closer, inclusive community for all.

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