Category: Q&A

Tom Shedden was born in London and studied Illustration at Central Saint Martins College Of Art.

Do scenes from literature or films inspire any of your imagery?

Not directly, I remember watching plenty of black and white Tarzan films and King Solomon’s mines type films when I was very young, and we did quite a bit of travelling then also as both my parents came from different countries on the other side of the world. I’ve not consciously looked to these experiences for inspiration, but they are perhaps there deep down. As far as literature goes, Tin tin books are about the extent of my circle of reference. Continue reading “Q&A with Tom Shedden”

Denise Nestor was born in Mayo in the west of Ireland. She graduated in 2004 from Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology and has been working in Dublin ever since.

What do you like to capture in the subject?

When it comes to portraiture I always aim to capture an emotion that the character may be feeling. It’s almost impossible to describe how I try to capture that, I’m not really sure myself, but it’s more about knowing it when you see it. I’ve often thrown away drawings that felt lifeless to me in some way. It’s important that there’s some depth to the subject and that you get a sense of something more than just a flat visual representation. The eyes are the most important part of a portrait to me, if they’re not working then I often just start again, that’s why I start all portraits with the eyes first. Continue reading “Q&A with Denise Nestor”

Nicholas Dedics graduated from Chelsea College of Art and Design in 2012 with an MA in Fine Art. His paintings have been shown in the ‘New Sensations’ at the Saatchi Gallery and recently in the ‘Hot One Hundred’ at the Schwartz Gallery.

How important is the medium you use to the subject matter/message?

I feel painting as a medium freely allows me to express my messages in the ways I want. In the painting process I let my imagination take over, acting out the roles of the fictional people from where I source my images and thoughts from. Only painting lets me approach a piece in this ‘interchanging personality’ way – putting marks on the canvas as if made by different people, but ultimately it’s all done by my hand, it’s all me and I find that interesting. Continue reading “Q&A with Nicholas Dedics”

Nina Fowler was born in London in 1981. She graduated with a first in sculpture from Brighton University in 2003. She was nominated for the BP Portrait Prize 2008,  Shortlisted for the Jerwood Drawing Prize 2010 and more recently, shortlisted for The Young Masters Prize 2012.

1. Do you come from a creative family?

Yes, my father is an architect. He is always my first point of call for advice on how to construct something. He has a way of designing/building things, which is always elegant and simple. He uses materials economically but with great style and practicality. My mother is a clothes designer and for me, her taste is impeccable. Like my dad she has a way of seeing beauty in things, which I am still learning from. They have always been the biggest supporters of my work. Dad even took me to see Hollywood via Elvis’ home, ‘Graceland’, when I was 16 and already fascinated by the legacy of both. Although my brother wouldn’t describe himself as creative he has also had a great influence on me through his knowledge of music, always steering me in the way of songs and artists that have been inspirational. My boyfriend Craig Wylie is now a constant source of creativity as he too is an artist – one that I will always hold in much higher esteem than myself – so to him I go for advice and we enjoy a mutual love of art in our lives. Continue reading “Q&A with Nina Mae Fowler”

Miguel was born in southern Spain and has been living in London since 2001, when he came here to complete a degree at Central St Martins College.

How did growing up in Spain affect how you paint now that you live in London?

I grew up in a very small town in Andalucia, steeped in a mixture of Roman Catholic mythology and local folklore and superstition. But I always felt like an outsider and was instinctively drawn to urban culture through American and British music, cinema and fashion. I suppose there is some reference to the austerity of the Spanish masters in my work, and the muted, earthy palate of the Andalucian countryside. Continue reading “Q&A with Miguel Laino”

Andy Harper is an artist based in the UK and is represented by Danese in New York, Morgen Contemporary in Berlin and The Page Gallery in Seoul.

Does the new collection of paintings come with a new set of mark making techniques? The floating blue curls for example.

I want the pace of making to be reflected in the new paintings. Viewers were fooled by the level of detail in the previous work and couldn’t reconcile the level of rendering yielded by what in reality was a very quick and fluid way of working. Many of my paintings from that period (2004-2010) were made in a day and never took more than a week. So although I haven’t totally re-invented how I work, I have consciously avoided the vocabulary of marks I acquired during that period. I still utilise a membrane of oily paint that is wet and totally malleable during the production of the painting, but the marks are now more direct and not dependent on motifs or a bag of tricks. The painting process has become more like the activity of drawing than ever before, it’s able to record decisions and embody thought itself. Continue reading “Q&A with Andy Harper”

Ilona Szalay studied at Oxford University (BA) and Byan Shaw, University of the Arts (MA). Her work was selected for the Threadneedle Prize 2012 and National Art Competition 2012.

Your work is described as looking at the tensions and the balance between ‘violence and control’ and ‘Beauty and fragility’. Is this something you wrestle with when painting?

Yes, the physicality of the painting process sometimes feels like walking a tight-rope – on the one hand there must be a spontaneity and unforeseen dynamism to the image which is all about a relinquishing of control but on the other hand the image must contain a skeleton, something rigorously ‘true’, which is born out of visual skill, experience and precision. So, there are pockets of intense control alongside areas of delicious abandonment. Continue reading “Q&A with Ilona Szalay”