The art of Aardvark

Aardvark is the creative brainchild of Lesley Greening Lassoff and Lesley ‘Pea’ Crabtree, self-confessed ‘magpies’ whose work embraces everything from folk art to English Modernism. We caught up with them in their home town of St Leonards-on-Sea to ask about their recent V&A commission and why they want us to kill our TVs.

East: Can you describe the creative impulse behind Aardvark?
Aardvark: We are driven to make things and to make things happen. At the heart of most artists’ work is a need to connect and be loved, and we’re no different.

E: What or whom are your influences?
A: A broad and mutable list of things: high, low, pop and queer culture, romanticism, poetry, picaresques and pastorals, things overheard in the Post Office queue.

E: Do you find the artistic process easier working in a partnership?
A: Yes, we have very different skills and complement each other in a creative and productive way. Lesley is the ideas person and Pea is the technical genius.

E: Can you tell us about your recent commission from the Victoria & Albert Museum.
A: Our manifesto print is a best seller in the V&A bookshop, and we were invited to be part of ‘Cherry on the Cake’, an annual project in which artists and designers make work in response to the museum. The final pieces are then showcased and sold in the museum shop. We designed a V&A manifesto in the style of a Victorian playbill, and it was chosen for the front cover of the catalogue, so a double delight for us.

E: You work a lot in linocut and letterpress. What is the appeal of these printmaking techniques?

A: They‘re not digital! You have to touch material and get your hands dirty, accidents may happen, and as in all analogue printmaking processes, there’s alchemy.

E: How important is typography in your art?
A: Very. It’s how we want our message to be seen and understood, through text. The meaning of the words is ultimately more important though; we’re not font nerds (well, Lesley’s not).

E: Why does your manifesto call to ‘Kill your TV’?
A: We have made a highly objective and scientific survey and our results prove that 99% of programmes are moronic, mindless, mediocre and worse: addictive. Crap telly is harmful to humanity, steals childhoods and should be euthanased.

E: What is the current art scene like in St Leonards?
A: The exciting stuff is happening quietly; the DIY ethic is very strong.

E: What are Aardvark’s current and future projects?
A: Text, text and more text, plus some pictures. Lots of lino. We’re involved in a more conceptual project with some other artists, but it’s too young to come out yet.

E: Aardvarks are elusive, nocturnal creatures. Does this describe your personalities?
A: No, we like to get at least 8 hours of sleep every night and we can often be found in tearooms, pubs and village halls.

E: Can you tell the readers of East a secret?
A: Pea is @berylreid on Twitter.