Nomad who lives off-grid in a van uses art to promote ‘respect’ of the ocean after seeing plastic waste on her travels

A sustainable artist who lives off-grid in her campervan uses her illustrations to encourage others to “respect” the ocean after her own experiences scuba diving and seeing plastic waste inspired her to campaign for a cleaner planet.

Jasmine Hortop, 32, an illustrator who is currently based in Cornwall, travels the country with her rescue dog, Darla – a pomeranian-poodle cross, in her van which she built with her dad during the Covid lockdowns.

Jasmine, whose partner lives in Italy, splits her time between the UK and mainland Europe, and says her ocean-based lifestyle gives her an “appreciation” for the sea and drives her to want to “protect it”.

She told PA Real Life: “Because I swim and surf, and am by the sea most days, I find it inspires a lot of my work and I aim to use my artwork to drive positive change and work towards a more sustainable planet.

“I am passionate about working with people who contribute to bettering the Earth, living mindfully and being conscious of your consumption.”

Jasmine’s nomad lifestyle began in 2019 when she moved out of her rental in Bristol to go travelling.

After housesitting in places like France, Spain and Mexico, Jasmine returned to the UK and bought a van.

In order to make it habitable, she needed to completely gut the vehicle and rebuild the insides from scratch, which she said became a lockdown project.

Jasmine said: “It used to be a Network Rail van so when I bought it, it was just full of Network Rail stuff.

“During lockdown, me and my dad had to rip it all out and build the whole thing from scratch, so it’s completely bespoke to what I need layout wise and energy consumption wise, and it enables me to just be completely off grid.

“I also run my whole business from it.”

Jasmine uses a lithium battery and solar panels on the roof to power her van and also has 100L of water, which lasts her from a week to 10 days.

A feature of her mobile home which she said was important to her is her permanent workspace, which she uses to create her art.

While Jasmine saves money by living in the campervan, she said the biggest perk of van life is the “freedom”.

She said: “I’ve lived in cities my whole life and I was desperate to get out. The feeling of being on the road and the freedom that comes with that.

“It’s a big thing to be able to be in nature and have that connection, to just wake up most days in nature or by the sea, I just love it.”

Working from her campervan, Jasmine is an illustrator who uses her art to promote positive change regarding climate issues.

She added: “I really love to make an impact with my work and make something that feels quite immersive. With a mural, I can completely transform a space, and I’ve done murals around the world, including Mexico, and more recently in India.

“I made one in north Devon that was inspired by the sea and all the sorts of things you find there. I look into engaging the viewer in different ways so that people take notice.”

Jasmine has since had her artwork included in a campaign by sustainable skincare brand SBTRCT.

The illustration portrays someone swimming through the plastic waste from travel-sized products.

The artwork was created to highlight the damage caused by plastic pollution and, more specifically by travel-sized skincare and toiletry products.

Jasmine said: “I very much live an ocean-based lifestyle and so much of my work is about water, so it really comes in aesthetically to my work as well.

“The plastic-free July campaign with SBTRCT gave me another opportunity to promote a cleaner life for our planet.

“I’ve had personal experience snorkelling or scuba diving in beautiful places and seeing the plastic waste that’s left there.

“I’m hoping to just encourage more people to spend time in the ocean and sort of use it as a point of connection to nature. I think that connection is something I’m always trying to get through in my work. I think the more time people spend in nature, they develop more respect for it, because they’re getting something from it.

“And the more time you spend and the more you get back, then the more likely people are going to join in to campaign to protect it in the future.”

Despite her push for more sustainable living, Jasmine said it is also important not to “be too hard” on herself.

She said: “I’m definitely not perfect. But I concentrate on campaigning for systemic change, which is what we really need to make a fundamental difference.

“I try not to blame on the choices I or others around me make in the society we live in today, where many greener options aren’t woven into the fabric of our day to day lives.

“I think that’s what is amazing about SBTRCT taking responsibility on really reducing waste from their products, they make it easy for consumers to be green, and I would love to see more brands shift to take on this responsibility too, thinking about the end life of their product.

“Everyone has a set of skills that is special to them and with issues like the climate crisis, those skills are needed in different ways. If we’re all doing the small things we can every day and doing the best we can, it will make a positive change on the world.”

To find out more about Jasmine’s collaboration with sustainable skincare brand SBTRCT, visit www.sbtrct.co.uk

For more information on Jasmine’s other work, visit: www.jasminehortop.co.uk