Stephen David's - Director and co owner of f-art gallery/store in Shoreditch London E2
Self expression painting, drawings Assemblages created as a means to communicate to a wider audience. My work is an extension of me and it a tool I use to communicate my fears my dreams my fun and my outlook. My work is a reflection is a mirror of me in all my complexities.
'Golly Gosh' - an article about Stephen, F'art, and Golly's in the Independent on Sunday
At the moment I am collaboration with an artist and we are working a line of work from prints to paintings. I am currently producing a series of Limited Edition wooden Art Toys that I intend to market through f-art.
Money spent on Crayons is never wasted?
I am an avid connoisseur of crayons and pencils. As long as I have access to paper I can draw and mark make anywhere
One favourite living artist?
Ralph Steadman. I respect his fluidity use of line and his power of execution
One favourite historical artist?
Cy Twombly for his mastery of the naive line and for being the godfather of Abstract Expressionism
When and where did you first want to do what you do?
12 but I was not supported. For years I suppressed my gift and my talent.
What place in the world has inspired you?
New York. I first went to Keith Harings Pop Shop in 1987 in Lafayette Soho and was blown away by the graphics and the sense of fun. I love New York for its mass, its energy and its organized chaos. Museum of Modern Art takes my breath away every time I visit NYC.
Do you work best on your own or in collaboration?
I work best in an environment that nourishes me and inspires me. I prefer to work alone as I find that my best work is created when I’m lost in my own thoughts.
What was the last art/craft/design thing you purchased?
Fabriano Cotton Paper 300 gms smooth – Class!!
At age 15 who influenced your style?
Ralph Steadman – at aged 15 I did not understand Art. I understood comics and comic books.
Last best read?
Black People in British Art 1800 – 1900 Jan Marsh
How much do you bend your 'vision' to suit the marketplace?
I don’t.
Who would you say buys your work?
Educated, cultural savvy interesting people who are confident who they are and what they like and want.
How do you set about starting a new project?
After care, planning and research I attack with vigor and determination.
What do you have on your pinboard?
A picture of my dead Sharpei dog - Shi
Where and what is your studio?
My studio was a 2000 sq foot warehouse in North London. A stunning space, but it gave me no privacy. I work now in my house which is open plan and light and peaceful.
What is your favourite website?
www.rawvision.com Outsider Art is art made from the Soul. I like the diversity and the stories of the artists and there individual personal journeys.
Surprising activity?
I collect Antique Ledgers
Do you have a good work/life balance?
If you switch off from doing your Art you burn out. Work Life balance is the ultimate in my success as an artist
What one word would describe your feeling of doing your work?
Therapy
Would you rather be doing something else?
No, as Art chose me. I did not choose it. It is who I am.
Do you think art and craft has any real importance?
Yes, they are on the same – but different forms.
Are their other fields that you'd like to apply some facet of your work into?
Interior Design
Guilty secret?
I play the Lottery.
Can anything be 'art'?
In my world anything and everything is ART
What do think are crimes against good taste & decency in art/craft/design?
QVC Channel.
Most underrated artist/maker?
Me. I do not promote myself as much as I should
Most overrated artist/maker?
Too many to mention. The ‘art’ of self promotion in the millennia has overtaken the Art of the Art.
If you could exhibit in any gallery which would it be?
The Serpentine
Monday, 15 September 2008
Artist of the Week - Stephen David's
Wednesday, 10 September 2008
Artist of the Week - PAUL DEBOIS
Paul Debois.
My personal work is usually landscape based, either urban or natural. Over the last 18 months, I have been exclusively working with natural subjects, which naturally lend themselves to the peculiarities of pinhole photography. Although I am a digital convert, my personal projects tend to be an antidote for the constraints placed on me by commercial photographic work and I often use film. It induces a different way of thinking.
One favourite living artist?
I love the work Cy Twombly - although abstract, it is fresh and uncontrived.
One favourite historical artist?
Without any hesitation my favourite historical artist is Turner - his paintings, particularly his later landscapes, are always good reference. I've looked at his work on and off for thirty years - there is always something new to see. Frequently dark and sombre - and like many artists, not fully appreciate until after his death! See the 'Slave Ship' - a fantastic piece of work, with many levels.
How much do you bend your 'vision' to suit the marketplace?
Consciously I don't do this - maybe unconsciously! As previously said, my personal work is an escape from commercial work. In the process of producing new photographs, I'm not really thinking of of the market place. These thoughts usually enter the frame once I have a set of images, when an edit is necessary, perhaps for an exhibition. Choosing the most relevant work with a unified theme becomes important - I suppose this has a leaning towards the market place!
Who would you say buys your work?
A wide range of people of all ages. And some people I've never met!
How do you set about starting a new project?
Difficult! It evolves from one small idea, usually turning into something completely different. I'm not usually a person who starts with a statement. This is something I find completely by accident and then develop. The Pinhole Impressions project started this way. I was experimenting with various film cameras and saw the Lime tree at RHS Wisley in the wind. (picture ref) It was quite sudden and the other images followed naturally.
What do you have on your pinboard?
Dozens of post it notes with obsolete software serial numbers and codes! I keep scrapbooks instead with anything that takes my fancy - often tearsheets, cards etc pages of brochures. I also keep old test prints with notes of what went wrong.
Where and what is your studio?
Don't have a studio as such. I just commandeer rooms around the house as and when necessary, much to my wife's annoyance!
Do you work alone? In silence, radio?
I always work alone - anyone else would be too much of an interference. But always with music - I find it difficult to work in silence. No specific music - depends on the mood, but usually loud. My daughters often tell me to turn it down!
Surprising activity/hobby?
Collecting old vinyl records. I always wanted to have a photograph on a 12 inch album cover - cd's don't have the same appeal to me - but it's unlikely to happen now. Shame as this was always a good source of groundbreaking art work.
Do you have a good work/life balance?
I think I have a reasonably good work/life balance as I can spend more time with my children than a lot of people - mainly because I work a lot at home. But I find it very difficult to switch off from my work. Once I've got something going, that's it!
What one word would describe your feeling of doing your work?
Obsessive.
Would you rather be doing something else?
Never in a million years - but I'd like an accountants salary!
If you could exhibit in any gallery which would it be?
Museum of Modern Art, New York - it's one of the greatest museums in the world. Think big!
