I only ever wanted to paint, or to draw, but really just wanted to communicate. The problem i had was that in the 70s and 80s dyslexia wasn’t a thing and teachers put you in special classes unless you had a mum who was more fierce than they were. Truth be told i wasn’t a bad student and i made average grades. Most of my reports seemed to be exasperated attempts to get me to apply myself more and work a little harder. From my angle it didn’t matter how hard I tried I knew what i wanted to say I just couldn’t work out how to make it come out.
I have a memory from primary school that I shared with my dissertation tutor at Uni, the guy who finally worked it out. Every week we had to go and sit with the head teacher in groups of 5 and read from our story books. We all sat on one side of the desk while she sat on the other with her copy open in front of her. I had, of course, forgotten it was reading day and therefore had forgotten my story book. Not wanting to get into trouble I shuffled into her office and sat waiting my turn not really knowing what i was going to do. While sitting there I discovered a talent. I could read the head teachers book upside down and it was easier that reading the right way up. The letters weren’t jumping around as much. So when it came to my turn I held my hands down and lifted my chin up and read from her book. I got away with it that day and discovered that not everything worked the way ‘grown-ups’ told you it did.
So like many others these day we recognise so many spectrum-y aspects and for the most part create coping mechanisims so that we can function in the world. But not knowing how to express myself in words allowed my to play with the marks a little more. When others stopped drawing and concentrated on their writing I didn’t.
I went to university, it was an art college when i started and became a uni the year after I left, and got my degree in Fine Art with Art History. Walked out with an average grade, thanks dissertation, and started work as a graphic designer. Thats a whole other story. the point here is that painting took a back seat for a while and I started my career in a London agency with probably the best creative director i have ever had. I was encouraged to try things and make mistakes, not too many though. Before long I was married, children came along and living in surrey the thought of a studio was very far from reality. Life went on.
Jump forward 30 years and divorce, remarriage and a move to another country, found me in a very different place. I still work as a designer and illustrator on a freelance basis, but I have a studio. A 20′ x 8′ glass fronted shed in our garden looking out over the south Lanarkshire hills. I have another chance to make sence of the world around me in the marks I make and this studio, this site, is a place to start sharing it.
Throughout my life i have scribbled, drawn and painted and sometimes people have liked it.
