Things That Make My Life Complete(Post 4): Art

Art, for many, is a form of escapism. For me, it poses both an emotional release and a foundation to build my own beliefs and discern my emotional responses in colourful, textural and tonal constructs. I have been in love with art since the age of three and since learning to draw and to paint, I began to focus on bettering my artistic practice and making it my full-time occupation.

By the time I was a teenager I had adopted a rebellious nature to my creations, finding my style befitting of my idol, Salvador Dali. Born in 1904, Salvador Dali is considered the father of surrealism with his unique and fluid paintings, including 'The Persistance of Memory' (1931).

"Surrealism is destructive, but it destroys only what it considers to be shackles limiting our vision." Salvador Dali.

My surrealist style was not entirely welcomed in university. I went to Cardiff Metropolitan University to study my first degree, after enjoying above average grades throughout college. While many of my course leaders posed biased in favour of expressionism and abstract art, I never lost my edge. I believed that art was a freedom from judgement: my own personal world to bend and morph in to whatever I wished it to be, regardless of what people thought or perceived it. We can all agree that art is one of those things that one person will always perceive differently from another, and thus, the idea of being 'different' never bothered me.

After following on from my first degree with another two, I finally felt ready to focus on building a career as a full-time artist. I worked from home, painting on canvas and panel and utilising a wide range of media from acrylics, oils and gouache, inks, charcoal and pastels. My early work tirelessly incorporated Dali's unmistakeable touches, until I began to work on a commission basis and developed an appreciation for other forms. Though I still enjoy surrealism, I slowly learnt that in order to benefit from art, I would need to open my mind to the interests, likes and concepts of others. I got heavily involved with pet portraiture and caricatures, and even dipped a toe into advertising and logo design.






Since 2010, I have been working for clients across the globe, from Asia to the United States, and no two works have been the same. Of the many people I have worked with, there are three projects which I can remember most vividly. Firstly, there is an enormous piece I did for my wife. My wife is a great lover of norse mythology and she has even adopted some of the ancient norse beliefs and worship. Two years ago, she asked me to develop a piece, regardless of whether it was painted, drawn or both, that depicted Yggdrasil (The World Tree), Fenrir and Jörmungandr (shown below).

Then of course, as mentioned before in a previous post I wrote, I worked with a developer of the Hawaiian Bitcoin (2016). The design for the coin was highly detailed incorporating binary code and historical figures of importance. The final result was a narrative of King Kamehameha and his exploration of the surrounding islands by boat. When I first made the design, I did not know how big Bitcoin would later become.

Lastly, the final piece I wanted to share, was a more recent project for the charity GISHWES. As some of you may know, GISHWES (The Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen) was founded by Misha Collins (Supernatural, 2005). As part of the 2017 GISHWES charity auction, I was comissioned to produce a painting (oil on canvas) depicting the characters of Supernatural in placement of The Last Supper.

'The Last Supper' WIP, 2017

Anyway, back to the main point, Art is one of my greatest loves. I aspire to always be taking part in artistic circles all my life. Art makes me happy, and gives me a sense of freedom that nothing else does. Despite its challenges and ever fluctuating horizons due to popularity and demand, art will always be there. It's one of the first projections of conscious belief, story-telling and innovation for humanity, and a special place for me to be...well 'me'. Furthermore, I am so fortunate to have undying support from friends and family, in particular my wife, who has even taken to do a spot of drawing here and there herself. She says it is therapeutic and I can understand why: with so much of life being fast forward, non-stop, high stress, it must be a welcome reprieve and a chance to be comfortable and released from that.

I believe that, no matter how good or bad you think you may be at drawing, painting, or collage (whatever takes your fancy), have a go. Art is a great way to take some essential time out. It is free for everybody, forever.