Elly Booth

  • Elly is photographed from the thighs upwards wearing black leggings and a grey hoodie, leaning with her left arm on to a counter in the Student Life Building, she has brown hair worn half up and half down
  • Four white canvases are layered on top of one another, three of the canvases have paintings of packaged jammy dodger biscuits and one painting on the very top is of a red ice lolly topped with pieces of banana and blueberries
  • Elly is photographed as a young child dressed in pink clothes and sunglasses sat down on a wicker outdoor sofa sat next to her grandad who has a grey beard and is dressed in a white vest and beige shorts wearing a straw hat and oversized pink sunglasses

Elly, a final year graphic design and illustration student, features in our ‘Humans of LJMU’ series in collaboration with the ‘Humans of Liverpool’ social media account, sharing the stories of the people who make our city, communities and university the vibrant, inclusive place it is in celebration of our bicentenary year.

In her interview she shares how her transient childhood made her quite shy at times, but how life at LJMU has changed that. She also reflects on her passion for art and how the inspiration comes from her grandad.

“People were always coming and going out of my life, and I never had the same friends for long. It made me quite shy, but coming to university has definitely helped me come out of my shell.”

– Elly Booth

Elly’s ‘Humans of LJMU’ interview

“I’m very friendly with a lot of people but I struggle to form tight connections. I have a lot of acquaintances but not that many close friends. I think that stems from when I was younger, I used to travel around a lot with my family. I’ve lived in South Africa, where they’re from and travelled around Cyprus and different parts of the UK. I probably went to about nine different schools, so people were always coming and going out of my life, and I never had the same friends for long. It made me quite shy, but coming to university has definitely helped me come out of my shell.

“I have an identity crisis every month over my art. I love it. It’s very peaceful. You get to sit down and just focus on one thing. You get an appreciation for different objects when you’re doing realism. But I’m always changing my style, thinking maybe I should go more abstract. I think that’s the trouble with social media, you see other people’s art and it can really make you overthink your own work.

“My grandad is very into art like me, but he didn’t pursue it like I am. He always wanted to sell his art but he never did. He’s always encouraged me to go after what I really want to do as he’s really career driven himself. I grew up with my mum as a single parent and he’s always been a real rock in my life, helping me in school. Him and my nan have been like parents to me. He always likes to check in with me and make sure I’m doing well. If I have a dissertation, he says 'send it to me before you submit it and I’ll read through it for you.'

“When I was 9, he used to watch a lot of Bob Ross. He’d have his canvas out and all his oil paints and he’d learn from him. One day, I went in and I was really inspired and said I’d like to try it as well, so he gave me my own little canvas and easel and we’d stand next to each other and paint the same thing together. Every now and then growing up we’d have painting club days where we’d just paint and chat all day. Ever since then I’ll take an object, put it in front of me and paint by eye, that’s how I’ve improved. He’s my biggest inspiration and he really introduced me to my love of art.”