Exeter alumna Victoria Rose Richards graduated in 2019 with a degree in Biology and has since gone from studying cells to selling handmade art. We caught up with her to find out more about the threads of her life that led to her becoming a full-time embroidery artist who creates handmade aerial embroidery, inspired by UK landscapes.
Victoria began embroidery during the last year of her studies to help combat stress and after her final exams concluded she leaned into it more and more. When the COVID-19 lockdown hit in 2020 she decided she would now focus on the hobby fulltime and turn it into a business. Victoria shares. “I just had so many ideas I haven’t stopped since! If I were to sum up my art style it would be: Idealised aerial embroidery that aims to invoke feelings of nostalgia.”
The journey of the last six years has made many highlights for Victoria including securing her first magazine feature in June 2019 and being part of a joint exhibition in London. However, what stands out for her most is when she completed her largest piece, a 18-inch landscape. Victoria explains, “I started my embroidery journey doing small 3–4-inch ones and as I gained confidence in my art, the landscapes got bigger and bigger, cumulating in that piece. To me is symbolised the confidence I’d gained in my ability to handle large projects. Now I want to do an even bigger one… I have an 18 x 24-inch hoop ready to go for a massive long-term project I’ve had in the back of my mind for the past year!”
Victoria’s pieces take inspiration mainly from the British landscape (specifically Devon, her home county!) but she doesn’t tend to copy real-life places outside of commissions as she likes to make things up as she goes and see what the landscape ends up like.
This connection Victoria has to Devon made us wonder how much of an impact her time at Exeter, studying at our Streatham Campus, and living in Birks Grange for the full three years, made on her and her art.
She shared that some of her favourite memories from her university days include the spring flowers blooming in the campus grounds. Victoria went on say, “I often walked to Reed Hall to explore, immerse myself in the trees and watch the fish in the pond area. I remember in my first spring there, I saw this huge bright pink rhododendron in full bloom tucked behind the hall… for the rest of my time there I looked forward to April to watch it flourish again. I also loved the tiered pond area at the end of the road past the Amory Building – the wildlife was so rich there and I found a big row of rhododendrons in purples, pinks, whites and red at the far end. The wildflower meadow behind the sports centre was another favourite, I would go orchid hunting there and occasionally there was deer running through the trees. I grew up in the countryside so I’m very nature focussed! Its why I chose the University of Exeter for my studies, I found their grounds to be the most beautiful.”
We also wanted to know what advice Victoria would give to any alumni or current students who are aspiring artists, and she shared, “Don’t be afraid to fail or make bad art! Progress isn’t linear and we all have to make ‘bad’ art before we make the art we find pride in. I struggled at the start to get my ideas out the way I wanted and I’m glad I pushed through it rather than giving up.”
Finally, given that Victoria’s art feels so magical and the aerial view it is created in makes you feel could step into the land she’s depicted we wanted to know: Would she rather have the power to make her embroidery come to life, or travel through the art to the place it’s based on?
Victoria said, “I’d rather have my embroidery come to life! Almost all my landscapes are based on my imagination so I can’t see them in real life. I’d especially love my pieces ‘Throw a penny in and make a wish’ and ‘My heart beats [in fields of] gold’ to be real, those were two of my favourites from 2024.”
To keep up to date with Victoria’s career and be able to discover her latest creations we recommend taking a look at her website https://victoriaroserichards.co.uk/ and following her on Instagram where she can be found as @victoriaroserichards.
Have you gone on to craft a unique career since graduating from the University of Exeter? If so, we’d love to hear about it! Our DMS are always open on socials (Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook) and if you’ve got lots to say you can email us at alumni@exeter.ac.uk to share your story.