Phil Shaw

Phi Shaw is a pioneering British digital-printmaker who painstakingly crafts hyperreal images of bookshelves that are both conceptually rich and technically brilliant. A graduate of the Royal College of Art with a doctorate in ink technology/printmaking, Shaw’s work harnesses the complete capacity of digital printmaking, operating between the mediums of painting and photography. 

Each work, whilst incorporating genuine book titles, is meticulously hand-drawn and subsequently printed on fine-grain Hahnemühle paper using dense water-based inks, achieving an extraordinary intensity of colour and sense of dimension. 

Their visual beauty belies a deeper conceptual engagement, as thoughtfully arranged titles subvert expectations, encourage introspection, or produce humour when viewed in relation to one another. These concealed internal narratives are only revealed upon close engagement, often confounding first impressions and casual expectations. 

Shaw has exhibited extensively since the 1970s, and for many years was a principal lecturer in printmaking at Middlesex University, London. His work is held in numerous international collections, including the British Government Art Collection and the Paul Allen Collection. 

In 2004, Shaw’s print Fiction 3 was chosen by the Royal Society of Painter Printmakers as its ‘Print of the Year’. Shaw was likewise commissioned by then British Prime Minister David Cameron to create a commemorative artwork presented to the world leaders for the 2013 G8 summit.