I had a few passions as a young kid. I've always loved drawing, but my other two obsessions were BMX and martial arts. My parents didn't have the money to send me to a good martial arts school, so I would rent crazy foreign films and break down how the actors were fighting. I was pretty good. By the time I got to my teens, I would take myself to any martial arts class I could find. I also loved BMX tricks. We'd build our own ramps and do crazy stuff. I have so many scars from those days. It was fun.
From the age of about 14 I figured out that I wanted to try and study art after high school. I went to a pretty awful high school. Nothing was expected of the kids there. It was a bit like a warehouse. I had a bunch of great friends but there was nothing there for me. I loved English and art. I gave up caring about the other lessons. I have dyscalculia, but it wasn't a thing back then.
I'd go to maths class full of crazy kids and then to English class where everyone was chilled out and receptive to learning. It was an eye opener to see the two extremes. I became involved in the graffiti art scene. That's the point where I really started to take art seriously.
I think literature and music have inspired me more than other artists. Franz Kafka, the music on the 4AD label, The Brother's Quay, Grimm Fairytales, Dostoevsky, cartoons, Roald Dahl, punk, lowbrow art, Tim Burton, Bill Hicks, Jan Svankmajer...the list goes on and on. The important thing is to be interested in a whole range of mediums. Not just illustration.
I fell in love with watercolour immediately. I love everything about it. The way it can be manipulated so easily and how quickly I can work with it. I discovered Schmincke and Daniel Smith paints after getting back into watercolours after a few years off. The pigments are so vibrant.
My big regret is that I didn't learn to play an instrument. I'm utterly obsessed by music and wish I could play. But that would take more than a week.
I think I'd choose to learn the archaic form of photography called wet plate. I've always loved photography. The more I learnt about photography, the more I began to dislike digital photography. Wet plate involves pouring chemicals onto a glass sheet. The results are other worldly. There's nothing quite like them. The character that revealed in the finished pieces are astonishing to me.
I think nature is my passion above everything else. It always has been. When I was a kid my family used to rent a remote cottage for our summer holiday. I would literally spend the whole year looking forward to the two weeks in an ancient cottage in the middle of nowhere with no hot water, bath or shower, electricity or inside toilet. I have a son and when he was born I decided to try and do the same thing for him. I began renting an even more remote cottage. Nothing but wild nature up a mountain in the English Lake District. There is nowhere I'm happier than in nature.
I don't use a wide range of mediums. Paper artwork always starts with a sketchbook doodle. Then it's put down on watercolour paper and either inked before painting or painted without the india ink. I only use acrylic paint on my sculptures unless you count Posca pens as acrylic paint.
I had a phase of enjoying Posca and Molotow paint markers to draw monsters. It was fun, but I don't really use them now. It's Schmincke and Daniel Smith gouache and watercolours on premium heavyweight watercolour paper.
I always carry an art kit if I'm away from home. A hardback sketchbook, metal tins of watercolour and gouache, pad of rough watercolour paper, brushes and black ink and dip pens. The rocks are made from papier mache clay that I make myself or wood that I carve. I do like drawing and painting on wood. I love the texture.
I have a few places that I've used to write short stories. They are the places I went to when I was a kid in Scotland and a place I've been visiting for the last 15 years in the English Lake District. Both are pretty wild and unspoilt places. The latter has been used in films such as Harry Potter, Lord or the Rings and other films. Very beautiful places that also have a bit of darkness to them. The weather can change drastically from one hour to the next.
Folklore is another passion of mine. It comes directly from my love of nature and the English landscape. Folk horror is my favourite film genre. The Wicker Man, Apostle, The Witch, Jugface, Pan's Labyrinth, The Hole in the Ground, etc.
I've been fortunate enough to use my social media to get quite a few contacts. I work for a few publishing companies and other businesses that require artwork. I also get commissioned work from individuals. Otherwise the artwork on my social media is work I've done for fun and put up for sale. I'm lucky enough to have people who want to buy my art. I never take that for granted. I'm thankful for every sale no matter how big or small.
The social media aspect grew organically. Before the big social media companies, there was one called Live Journal. I really enjoyed it. It attracted artists, writers, photographers, fashion designers, alt models and anyone else arty. I used it predominantly as a writer and only a little bit as an illustrator. I became friends with quite a few really good writers. I'm still friends with a few. It was a great place to try content. All word of mouth. It was sold to Russia and died off.
I'm not a big social media fan nowadays. It's a necessary evil as far as I'm concerned. Instagram is the only one I enjoy. It's easy to build it around things that are interesting. I don't know how long it will last.It seems like I've been waiting for a better form of social media for years. Nothing seems to get traction.
It's been very humbling to get emails from people telling me how my art has helped them through a rough time. Or that they discuss my drawings with their friends. It's one of those things I did not expect. I've always tried to reply to anyone who has questions about art or techniques, etc.
As time went on with my Instagram, I decided to use it as an experiment in karma. I decided it would be a place just for the art. Nothing else. Just the art and related photos of me making it. And also to be as helpful as I can. It's worked out so far. It's been a surprise really.
People say never meet your heroes. I used to stick to that theory until I messaged one of my art heroes years ago. I'd heard that he was a quite intimidating and slightly crazy guy. He turned out to be the nicest guy. A really warm person who seemed genuinely interested in what I was doing. Nobody has the obligation to be nice. It was just such a great moment and it stayed with me. It takes nothing to reply to questions.
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See Mr. Barghest's art on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mrbarghest/