1. How do you feel right now? - Daunted by the realisation that I have to answer all these questions.
2. Why do you paint? - I guess my style is a little schizophrenic in terms of using a mixture of mediums. I am just as at home painting as I am wheat pasting, producing installations or sculptures to layering up collages and screen printing. As long as I’m being creative I’m pretty damn happy.
3. What are you currently obsessed with? - Packaging that has been discarded in the street, I have about 40 crushed Coke cans that I have collected and are in my opinion things of beauty – all different, all crushed in uniquely different ways. I’m having that age old dilemma though, what is art?
4. How/does your past career influence your work? - As someone who has spent a fair amount of time in the sanitised world of corporate graphics, it’s liberating to break away from those restrictions and play around with dirtying stuff up, degrading images and conceptualising on a different level..
5. How would you say your art has progressed over the years? - I would like to think that I have kept loyal to my initial ethos and am continually pushing and experimenting and hopefully getting better.
6. Name one street artist you can’t get enough of and explain why. - Banksy, still the sharpest and the best. The show in Bristol is awesome and I never use that word. Loving the way he’s using sculpture and installation, brings a warm glow to my heart as I’m a keen exponent of this form of street art.
7. How much thought goes into your work? Is it spontaneous or considered? - Always considered, concept and the message is key for me, I’m not really into pretty pictures for example.
8. How would you define “street art?” And how do you view it’s connection with ‘graffiti’ - For a definition of good street art see my answer to question 16. Street art and I’m presuming you mean predominantly stencil art was a natural progression from old school graffiti born out of getting stuff up on walls quickly before you got arrested.
9. What does it mean to sell-out? - Doing more than about 10 artist proofs of screen prints makes me angry especially when they’re exactly the same as the regular edition.
What is authenticity? What does it mean to keep it real? - do what you want to and not what’s going to make you cash otherwise it becomes little more than IKEA art. If the two collide all well and good.
10. Describe your process. - Firstly, an initial concept or germ of an idea which can take the form of a headline, a lyric or just a word. Then it’s a matter of attaching a visual element to it that works on hopefully more than one level which brings the whole thing together as one.
11. Is there such a thing as ‘bad’ art? What is it? Name names. - In my opinion yeah, there’s loads of crap art out there but that’s the beauty of it because it’s always a matter of personal taste. Also, to a large degree it doesn’t matter if something is good or bad, a high percentage of people are like sheep and buy certain art because they are told it is good.
12. Do street artists make ethical choices in what they do, where they do it and how? - For me yes, I certainly like to tie all the loose ends up but I’ve definitely been guilty of vandalism for vandalism sake.
13. Everything is about fear or desire. Which one interests you more? - Fear to fail, love to succeed.
14. The last great piece of work you saw was what, by whom and how did it make you feel? - Guy Denning’s piece at UPFEST – though I think he should have stopped about an hour earlier as it looked the dogs and in my opinion he overworked it a bit in the end. Also… he wore a very fetching brown bowler so extra marks there.
15. Can good art be political? Can political art be good? - I guess most of my stuff has a political bent in some way or another so definitely yes.
16. What is good art? What is good street-art? - I guess according to the masses, good art is something that sells, great art is something that sells for millions – for me, good street art is something that utilises it’s environment or makes a comment that captures a moment in time.
17. Who has got completely the wrong end of the stick recently? - Politicians. They continually bemuse me with some of their choices and actions.
18. Where is it all going? - Down the plug hole
19. Where are you going? - Probably down the plug hole too but hopefully doing some good art on the way down.
20. Is street-art a social activity? - Having done a few street art festivals recently (Upfest, Bazaart, The Beautiful & The Canned) the simple answer is yes and it’s great meeting like minded people and getting young kids involved in being creative. Having said that… it’s not that social when you’re half way up a ladder at 2am with a stencil that’s too big and a spray can that’s on it’s last legs.
21. What albums are you listening to at the moment? - In a world that listens to music constantly on shuffle I have been revisiting albums and listening to them as they were meant to be listened to – track 1 through to the end. Songs for Swinging lovers by Frank Sinatra, Nevermind by Nirvana, Raw Power by Iggy Pop, The Heart of Saturday Night by Tom Waits…. a whole mishmash of stuff really.
22. In a world without limits you would create… - I don’t feel I have limits creatively just financially. At the beginning of the year I wanted to put the Houses of Parliament up for sale, If I’d of had the cash I would have run some full page fake estate agents adverts in the newspapers. I also looked into large scale projection but alas money restricted me.
23. How fucked are we on a scale of one to ten? What can we do about it? - I reckon about a 9 but we’ll keep plodding on.
24. The Greeks reckoned that Art should bridge the gap between science, nature and perfection. What do you reckon? - Bollocks? I reckon art should be like a greetings card, seize the moment and then chuck it away.
How do you feel right now?
Daunted by the realisation that I have to answer all these questions.
Why do you paint?
I guess my style is a little schizophrenic in terms of using a mixture of mediums. I am just as at home painting as I am wheat pasting, producing installations or sculptures to layering up collages and screen printing. As long as I’m being creative I’m pretty damn happy.
What are you currently obsessed with?
Packaging that has been discarded in the street, I have about 40 crushed Coke cans that I have collected and are in my opinion things of beauty – all different, all crushed in uniquely different ways. I’m having that age old dilemma though, what is art?
How/does your past career influence your work?
As someone who has spent a fair amount of time in the sanitised world of corporate graphics, it’s liberating to break away from those restrictions and play around with dirtying stuff up, degrading images and conceptualising on a different level..
How would you say your art has progressed over the years?
I would like to think that I have kept loyal to my initial ethos and am continually pushing and experimenting and hopefully getting better.
Name one street artist you can’t get enough of and explain why.
Banksy, still the sharpest and the best. The show in Bristol is awesome and I never use that word. Loving the way he’s using sculpture and installation, brings a warm glow to my heart as I’m a keen exponent of this form of street art.
How much thought goes into your work?
Is it spontaneous or considered? - Always considered, concept and the message is key for me, I’m not really into pretty pictures for example.
How would you define “street art?” And how do you view it’s connection with ‘graffiti’
For a definition of good street art see my answer to question 16. Street art and I’m presuming you mean predominantly stencil art was a natural progression from old school graffiti born out of getting stuff up on walls quickly before you got arrested.
What does it mean to sell-out?
Doing more than about 10 artist proofs of screen prints makes me angry especially when they’re exactly the same as the regular edition.
What is authenticity? What does it mean to keep it real?
Do what you want to and not what’s going to make you cash otherwise it becomes little more than IKEA art. If the two collide all well and good.
Describe your process.
Firstly, an initial concept or germ of an idea which can take the form of a headline, a lyric or just a word. Then it’s a matter of attaching a visual element to it that works on hopefully more than one level which brings the whole thing together as one.
Is there such a thing as ‘bad’ art? What is it? Name names.
In my opinion yeah, there’s loads of crap art out there but that’s the beauty of it because it’s always a matter of personal taste. Also, to a large degree it doesn’t matter if something is good or bad, a high percentage of people are like sheep and buy certain art because they are told it is good.
Do street artists make ethical choices in what they do, where they do it and how?
For me yes, I certainly like to tie all the loose ends up but I’ve definitely been guilty of vandalism for vandalism sake.
Everything is about fear or desire. Which one interests you more?
Fear to fail, love to succeed.
The last great piece of work you saw was what, by whom and how did it make you feel?
Guy Denning’s piece at UPFEST – though I think he should have stopped about an hour earlier as it looked the dogs and in my opinion he overworked it a bit in the end. Also… he wore a very fetching brown bowler so extra marks there.
Can good art be political? Can political art be good?
I guess most of my stuff has a political bent in some way or another so definitely yes.
What is good art? What is good street-art?
I guess according to the masses, good art is something that sells, great art is something that sells for millions – for me, good street art is something that utilises it’s environment or makes a comment that captures a moment in time.
Who has got completely the wrong end of the stick recently?
Politicians. They continually bemuse me with some of their choices and actions.
Where is it all going?
Down the plug hole
Where are you going?
Probably down the plug hole too but hopefully doing some good art on the way down.
Is street-art a social activity?
Having done a few street art festivals recently (Upfest, Bazaart, The Beautiful & The Canned) the simple answer is yes and it’s great meeting like minded people and getting young kids involved in being creative. Having said that… it’s not that social when you’re half way up a ladder at 2am with a stencil that’s too big and a spray can that’s on it’s last legs.
What albums are you listening to at the moment?
In a world that listens to music constantly on shuffle I have been revisiting albums and listening to them as they were meant to be listened to – track 1 through to the end. Songs for Swinging lovers by Frank Sinatra, Nevermind by Nirvana, Raw Power by Iggy Pop, The Heart of Saturday Night by Tom Waits…. a whole mishmash of stuff really.
In a world without limits you would create…
I don’t feel I have limits creatively just financially. At the beginning of the year I wanted to put the Houses of Parliament up for sale, If I’d of had the cash I would have run some full page fake estate agents adverts in the newspapers. I also looked into large scale projection but alas money restricted me.
How fucked are we on a scale of one to ten? What can we do about it?
I reckon about a 9 but we’ll keep plodding on.
The ancient greeks reckoned that art and science should bridge the gap between nature and perfection. What’s your thoughts?
I reckon art should be like a greetings card, seize the moment and then chuck it away.
