So, tell us a little about you.

I am a wallpaper, textile and surface pattern designer based in East London.

What’s your story? Tell us a little about your background and what you do.

I primarily think of my work as a way of putting my drawings onto things or into spaces. I love what I do, and I have been doing it for about 15 years now. I also upcycle furniture for the BBC show Money For Nothing, so do a lot of creative problem solving!

What artist or artwork inspired you the most growing up?

I grew up on the south coast, quite near to Charleston Farmhouse where the Bloomsbury Group lived. Duncan Grant and Vanessa Bell were very influential, and in visiting Charlestown and seeing the painted rooms and textiles by Henry Moore was exciting to me.

What artist are most inspires you now?

Another house, another bunch of artists! Kettle's Yard in Cambridge is such a great place. I love the ship paintings by Alfred Wallis, as they are so raw, and he was so prolific in producing them. He's also a bit of an art underdog who became an artist after his wife passed away. He was a fisherman and scrap metal merchant who managed to infiltrate the art scene. Brilliant!

What do you create mostly for work and what do you create mostly for fun?

The two are often intermixed for me, luckily! I love drawing and turning those drawings in to print. Creating new stuff is always fun. 

What piece of work are you most proud of? Why?

I suppose its my new wallpaper, Heronry, as its the most evolved and complex one I make, and showcases a new aesthetic direction for me. 

Do you think people are just born creative or is it something everyone has, but many don’t explore?

I think we all have it in us in some way, but some of us never find it. Often people think of creativity in very specific terms, but I think it has many useful forms too!

What’s your favourite colour? Why?

Currently green! I'm drawn to it at the moment. Bright rich olive green is my favourite at the moment. I'm unsure why, but I think it might just be because it is so powerful and joyful in interiors.

What’s your favourite album to listen to whilst you create and why?

Wow, good question! It depends on the mood I'm in, but you can't go far wrong with Loaded by the Velvet Underground. 

If you were stuck on a desert island and had to bring 3 items with you to create with, what would you bring!?

Drawing tools or tools to make drawing tools with! I'm fairly practical, so I think I would bring something to work with the local materials. An axe, a chisel and a mallet I suppose!

If you could give advice to yourself growing up, with the benefit of hindsight, what would it be?

Oh goodness, heaps! But these things shape us. I guess it would be to have more self belief in the beginning, and to have less self limiting beliefs! 

What / who made you decide to become a professional creative, rather than doing it as a hobby?

I was sort of thrown in at the deep end so it never stemmed from a hobby. I bought a bunch of equipment to set up my studio when I was at university. It was offered very cheap and that sort of shaped my direction. I needed a studio to set it up in and I needed to make it work.

What makes you most happy?

Time with my wife and son. 

What’s next for you? What you would like to be doing in 12 months?

I have a very exciting project which will take up the next few months and launches in Spring, but I'm also working on some limited edition Riso prints, exploring a new process.

Is there anything exciting coming up that you would like to let people know about?

I'm going to be launching my new Riso prints at the Selvedge Fair, Mary Ward House, 5-7 Tavistock Place, Kings Cross, London WC1H 9SN on Saturday 7 December, 11am-5pm - info at button below.

And of course the silk-screen printing workshop with M.Y.O on Sunday November 3rd - tickets at button below.

Where can people find out more about what you are up to?

My Instagram - @DanHeathStudio.