I’ve been drawing since I could hold a crayon, I trace every interest and skill back to that. My dad is a caricaturist, his talent for getting an idea down on the page quickly and minimally influenced my art greatly. I can communicate through drawings faster than I can with words, an invaluable skill I have carried over to my design work too. Here is a selection of recent artworks that I have completed.
During Covid 19, I pivoted to learning digital art, I had moved from the UK to Australia during the pandemic and I wasn’t able to bring my art supplies with me. Using software like Procreate and Heavy Paint allowed me to continue working on my art wherever I found myself.
Artwork
‘Half The World Away’
‘Half The World Away’ is an artwork I made for Prospect 100. It came 6th globally and was minted into an NFT. The proceeds of the sale were donated to Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation where the funds supported Armed Forces and civilians affected by conflict.
The artwork is a modern take on Pablo Picasso’s ‘Guarnica’, a painting depicting the horrors of war. I wanted to show the reaction to the Ukraine war in Melbourne. I observed that the party still went on and people still lived their own narratives despite what was happening half the world away. Coverage of the war, just a footnote in the night.
‘Botanical Gardens Duck’
Learning digital art was, in some ways, like learning how to draw again. It took me 2 years to really grasp it. I “paint” on Procreate like I would on canvas, I like to use brushes that emulate real strokes and textures that feel rough and manual. Digital is great for getting a smooth finish and accurate lines, but that isn’t always how I want my art to be, so fighting against this and seeing how the computer reacts is all part of the process.
Michael Fikaris ‘Be Meta’
In 2022, I got the opportunity work with Micheal Fikaris through the RMIT study tour. He provided stencils for his work ‘Be Meta’ which featured his friends in hazmat suits. It was the first time I had done street art and I found myself trying to sneak my own drawings into Fikaris’s work (perhaps to his annoyance).
The impermanence of the work really appealed to me. I generally don’t get very sentimental about my drawings and often give them away to friends.
Heavy Paint Artworks
I began using Heavy Paint in 2023. I was drawn to its simplicity and digital effects. At the time, I was studying colour theory and craving a program that allowed me to experiment with drawing light, not just form. What makes Heavy Paint different is that you fill space, you don’t draw as much, it’s similar to traditional painting in that way.
Ikea Paper
This artwork was drawn on Ikea packaging paper. It goes a bit deeper than that though. It started my fascination with turning trash into treasure, long before the No Bull Cause. I set myself the challenge of filling an entire 80cm x 31cm piece of packaging paper with drawings, to transform this throwaway item into something to cherish.
It took 2 months of drawing a little bit here and there with a HB and a 2B pencil, but it was eventually completed. There was no narrative or goal other than to just fill it. There are some interesting characters that pop up throughout. The drawing was published in the Perspektif Magazine which was sold at the NGV.
Birds
Birds are my favourite thing to draw and paint. They’re a colourful blob with so many varieties. I’ve become good friends with the ducks and moorhens at my local park, Fitzroy Gardens. Being able to get close up to birds means they’re excellent muses.
Here’s a selection of digital drawings of birds. The “Burrito Bird” was bought by ZeroTag and is now their default profile picture for their app.
Landscapes
When I was 7, I loved drawing cities. It would make sense, I lived in the centre of Sydney, on George Street. One day, I drew the green dome of the Queen Victoria Building, I could see it from my apartment window. My dad entered me and the drawing into a Faber-Castell competition for kids, I got highly commended and the artwork was hung in the Art Gallery of NSW.
I moved back to the UK when I was 10. I wasn’t in a city anymore, I couldn't draw the world from the 19th floor, instead I painted the sea and photographed the cows. Below are some examples of cities and fields.
Histogram Series
When you embrace the technology behind digital art and photography, you can begin to bend it how you like. These are Histograms created on Glitch Lab using famous artworks. ‘The Scream’ by Edvard Munch, ‘Starry Night’ but Vincent Van Gough and ‘The Great Wave’ by Hokusai.
