daisy billowes
Daisy Billowes is a Manx-based artist raised in Athens & the UK. She studied Fine Art at Newcastle University (2015) and Painting at the Royal College of Art, London (2017).
Daisy’s practice explores themes of mythology, folklore, and the female narrative through a multi-disciplinary approach, including painting, drawing and small-scale sculpture. She has recently completed a body of work funded by the Manx Art Council, focusing on local folklore and mythology. In early 2024, she undertook a residency with Studio Umami on the Isle of Man, following her participation in Unit 1 Gallery Workshop’s Radical Residency VII in London (2022). Her recent exhibitions include Myo New Street Square in London (January–May 2024), 100 from 100 at The Art Office, London (December 2023–January 2024), Entrevues in Annecy, France (October 2023), and The Other Art Fair in London (October 2023). Billowes has held several solo and collaborative exhibitions, including four disproportionately sized chambers at The Stone Space, London (2020) and Reckless Rawness at Coleman Project Space, London (2019), a joint show with Julia Marco-Campmany.
Daisy is actively involved in education and outreach, delivering workshops and talks for organizations such as Friday Island in Luxembourg and Control-c, a two-day master print workshop with Newcastle University. She has also contributed to the Symposium: The Relevance of Print in Contemporary Art Education as part of the International Print Biennale. Her accolades include the East London Printmakers Residency (2018), the Bluewolf Scholarship, and a shortlist for The Muse Residency.
In her work, Billowes delves into the intersections between female identity, mythology, and contemporary digital practices. Her process is deeply tactile, merging instinctive mark-making with a celebratory deconstruction of traditional narratives. She investigates the spaces ‘in between’—moments of solitude, self-possession, and resilience—challenging the constraints often placed on women in mythological and historical contexts. Drawing inspiration from Roland Barthes’ idea of myth as a “meta-language,” her works become vessels for exploring autonomy and agency. By reimagining these timeless stories through a contemporary lens, Billowes highlights the enduring relevance and power of these narratives in today’s cultural landscape.
press
education
Royal College of Art 2015-2017, MA Print
Newcastle University 2011-2015, BA (Hons) Fine Art
talks, exhibitions & residencies
Studio Umami Residency, Isle of Man, January-February 2024
Myo New Street Square, London, 8 Jan- 31 May 2024
100 from 100, London, The Art Office, London, Dec 23 - January 24
Entrevues, Anncey, France, October 2023
The Other Art Fair, London, October 2023
THE TAGLI 01.23 Collection and Mentorship Award Finalist, April 2023
she used to be a troubled type, Foraging Vintners, Pop-up show, IOM, May 2023
Artist Talk, Shee Studios, Isle of Man, April 2023
Insights Inside, Exhibition in Annecy, France, March 2023
Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair, London, November 2022
Radical Residency VII, Unit 1 Gallery Workshop, London, August 2022
Old Jet Residency, Old Jet, Suffolk, October 2021
London Creative Network Recipient, SPACE London, London, Summer 2021
four disproportionately sized chambers, The Stone Space, Leytonstone, London, 13th March - 5th April 2020
Exceptional, The Collyer Bristow Graduate Art Award, 7th November - 19th February 2019
The London Ultra, Bargehouse, London, 31st October - 10th November 2019
Summer Group Show 2019, The Muse Gallery, London, 25th July - 4th August 2019
Reckless Rawness, Coleman Project Space, London, 22nd June - 14th July 2019
2-day master workshop ‘control-c’, Newcastle University, March 2019
Signature Art Prize, Trinity Art Gallery, London, February - March 2019
Woolwich Contemporary Editions, Always Sunday House, Bath, 28 – 30 March 2019
Artist’s Talk: East London Printmakers, London, 20th November 2018
Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair, London, 21-25th November 2018
Print Demonstration, Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair, London, 23rd November 2018
Selected Artist for Woolwich Editions, London, November 2018-2019
Signature Art Prize Shortlist Exhibition, Somerset House, London, date tbc November 2018
Festival of Print ELP @ 20, The Art Pavilion, Clinton Road, Mile End Park, 28th Nov - 9th December 2018
Macmillan Charity Silent Auction, The Sea Containers London, 29th November 2018
RCA Secret 2018, Courtyard Galleries, RCA, Kensington, London, 30 Nov - 3 Dec 2018
Artist In Residence, East London Printmakers, August - November 2018
Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair, London, October, 2017
Super Super, Kingsgate Project Space, London, June 2017
RCA Graduate Show 2017, Dyson Gallery, RCA, London, June 2017
FRIDAY ISLAND: Blind Drawing Workshop, Lycée Michel Lucius, Luxembourg, 2017
Output, CPG Gallery, London, 2017
Plymouth College of Art: Artist’s Talk Daisy Billowes, 2017
Symposium: The Relevance of Print in Contemporary Art Education. An artist's talk as part of the International Print Biennale, Newcastle, 2016
Notice: , Dyson Building, Battersea, London, 2016
DIS PLAY, CGP Gallery, Southwark Park, London, 2016
WIP Show Open House, RCA Battersea, London, 2016
NCL Degree Show, SCIN Gallery, London, 2015
Newcastle University Degree Show, Newcastle University, 2015
‘GRABADORAS’, 36 Lime Street, 2015
Utopia, Newcastle, January 2015
Proof, XL Gallery, Newcastle, July/August 2014
2D exhibition, Long Gallery, Newcastle, 2012