I was very kindly invited to be interviewed for a the 'Imagination Edition' of London's uber-cool creative publication, 'Fabric-a Magazine'. It ended up being a first-up, fourteen page feature exploring many aspects of me and my most recent work. I hope it gives some background as to who I am and what I'm all about. It was certainly a very humbling experience and I am am very grateful to Creative Director Andrea Horne, and Editor In Chief Edyta Michalska for the more than flattering opportunity to share my work and outlook.
1. Unfortunately life doesn’t always mirror university, life brings so
many other factors that impact on you, positive ‘and’ negative.
What you may have loved consistently at university can become
something very different in practice. In the fullness of time, the
experience of actually doing things informs us of where we will find
happiness.
Do you have any mentors or role models?
In my early life, I didn’t really have a single role model in a parent or
sibling, teacher or sports coach; I wasn’t one for having posters on my
walls of idols or aspirations particularly. I tended to cherry-pick, what
I was aware of, was that there is elements of all things and people we’d
hope to aspire to. In all that surrounds us we can find our inspiration,
should we be open minded enough to notice.
I suppose those who’ve overcome adversity and maintained their
ability to function despite the odds are those who I look up to most.
Whether that be a school teacher who taught me through poetry how
to derive beauty from the most simple of things, to the coach who
instilled in me the ability to focus completely and ‘play up and play
the game’ regardless of circumstances. I have taken so much from so
many. I’m ever in the search for the next to inspire me and cast light
on my path.
You have worked in art, architecture, illustration, interiors,
fashion, and furniture. Which one is your favorite and why?
It’s the creative process I love, regardless of any predefined notion of
any particular discipline. I suppose in Art and fashion if pressed I see
the greatest speed and freedom of expression. Yet these days I wonder
whether Fashion, Film, Advertising and Computer Games offer the
ultimate creative experience I would hope to find in my every day.
Unfortunately to date, I have not had the opportunity to work within
these spaces, but I would dearly love to.
Having experienced many other disciplines to varying degrees, I would
love to experience these, I am confident like my choice of Product
& Furniture Design at Kingston University; they often encompass all
the rest. They require knowledge of art, architecture and design in no
small part. They require an intimate understanding of many things,
and therefore they offer the greatest potential longevity as I see it.
They offer the party to my creative mind-palace.
What piece of work are you most proud of?
Usually the next one, hard to say, for me, ‘being about the process’
is about moving forward, though I can still appreciate my previous
12
13