Diagram of self
I left school with the ambition to be a graphic designer. I enrolled on a BTEC course at Newcastle College to which I completed two years. Priority’s in life changed and I left college to go into fulltime employment. I spent the past thirty years trying to find something that would fulfill the gap that I had felt often. I have a serious heart and lung condition that has been with me since birth. I was always being told different stories on how it would impact my life, how long I would be here and what I could and couldn’t do. I decided to take control to live the life I wanted from the age of 15, my outlook changed and furthermore when I met my wife at the age of 18, we went on to have three amazing children and the priority was to make sure I was here to see them grow up.
By the time I was 25 I had 3 amazing children but no real goal to my life, this has never changed until now. Art always stuck its head out over the last 30 years from portraits to painting murals in my children’s bedrooms.
Four years ago I started creating canvases of pop culture characters and famous people such as Eminem and Marilyn Monroe. They seemed popular for the quick stencil style paintings but the high detail work not so much. I painted murals for friends business and forgotten how this made me feel and the sense of forgetting and losing myself in my art.
After a lot of soul-searching and feeling unhappy in my work, I sat down with my wife and talked about going back into education. My wife and children encouraged me to pursue my dream and I found myself at the opening evening at Newcastle College with my eldest daughter. It was quite funny that day, as people assumed that it was my daughter that was going to enroll. I didn’t let that deter me and found myself excited and positive for the journey that lay ahead. So that brings me to now! I am officially a student again with the drive, passion and mature head to succeed and make this work second time around. I am looking forward to start my new journey.