Introducing Adrian Sykes

Adrian Sykes is a new artist to Curwen Gallery. We decided to get to know the man and his works a little better.

Adrian Sykes in his studio in Bristol

Curwen Gallery: You studied at Bath College of Art- was it in the architecture of Bath that you first discovered an interest in quirky, tumbledown buildings? How has your style changed since your student days?

Clifftop, oil on board, 90 x 45cm
£1495

Adrian Sykes: I was beginning to cultivate an interest in painting buildings and the effects of sunlight on them before my days in Bath. Having lived on the Wirral for most of my early life I studied at the now closed down Withens Lane college of Art where I did my foundation course. 

There began a lifelong interest in the works of Edward Hopper. Where I lived at the time really suited exploring this approach with all the back to back houses and backyard scenes where the sharp Northern light criss-crossed into these hidden worlds making great painting material. When I moved to Bath to study I was instantly fascinated by the architecture and in particular the tall buildings and narrow passageways that held so much intrigue for me as a painter.

Curwen Gallery: Do you take a lot of inspiration from your surroundings and everyday life? How does your current environment, living in Bristol, affect your work?

Adrian Sykes: When I first moved back to the South West after many years away, I revisited Bath and painted the surroundings in quite a realistic way but then began to move from this approach after discovering a more imaginative side to my work.

I now find that living in the city informs me in more of an indirect way. As Bristol is not the most visually inspiring of cities I have to retreat more into my imagination and rely on my visual memory bank to create my paintings which I find to be more stimulating than trying to recreate ‘actual’ scenes from real life. I am often informed by my surroundings however and particularly enjoy the landscapes and townscapes of France and Italy where I have travelled extensively.

Cliff Houses, oil on board, 37 x 18cm
£575

Bristol inspires me in a circumlocutory way as the artists quarter I live in is constantly surprising and inspiring and full of artists all bustling together to turn ideas into reality and that is a very inspiring setting to work in. 

Also my studio at Jamaica Street Artists is a constant source of inspiration to me and my fellow artists have often proved vital in shaping a difficult piece with their expert critique. To be surrounded by people all in this same funny art-shaped boat as me is very regarding and heartening and the type of people here are very typically Bristol in their open mindedness and generosity.

Curwen Gallery: You were a full time musician for many years. Were you still making artwork during this time? Did you find that the two creative practices informed each other? 

Adrian Sykes: There was a period after studying where I concentrated solely on being a musician as I was seduced by the lifestyle of travelling and playing. Laurie Lee’s “As I Walked Out…” was a huge influence on me and the lure of busking was too hard to ignore. During this period I managed both in a very bohemian way continuing to draw as a screever with pavement art when funds were getting low with my flute by my side. 

There is a strong link between the two as they are both creative and intuitive pursuits and I often paint whilst listening to music but have yet to master doing this the other way around! I am sure on one level that there is a symbiotic relationship between the two but they are also vastly different disciplines so it is hard to pinpoint exactly where they meet.

I now play music regularly with a band in Bristol called ‘Sheelanagig’ where I play the flute and banjo and enjoy periods of intensive touring and travelling. Managing the two careers as well as a young family can be challenging at times but luckily I have an amazingly supportive wife who encourages both my chosen paths in life as long as I am back in time to change some nappies and give her a lie in….!

Moon House, oil on board, 60 x 26cm
£895

 Curwen Gallery: You travel a lot- what places have influenced this current body of work?

Adrian Sykes: This current body of work has been influenced by an amalgamation of different European countries that have infiltrated into my imagination as well as some quintessentially English landscapes. I have not tried to replicate anywhere in particular and have instead attempted to convey a ‘feeling’ and atmosphere more than a sense of place. 

The joys of aging is that the brain holds a bank of inspiring places which appear often subconsciously in my work without my realising often surprising me when someone recognises somewhere familiar. It adds another level of interest to me when people identify somewhere specific.

Curwen Gallery: Are you actively involved in the   Bristol art scene? Do you find that your work has much in common with your contemporaries working in Bristol? 

Adrian Sykes: I am part of a wonderful collective of artists based at Jamaica Street Artists Studios in Stokes Croft, Bristol. This is a thriving community of painters, sculptors, illustrators and makers and has continued over the last two decades to produce some of the best artists working today. 

Banksy really gave this area its’ reputation and we often have groups of street art fans photographing the walls. Abigail Reed, Dan Ablitt, Anthony Garrett are among my contemporaries and we all support each other through critique and friendship. It is a unique atmosphere of generosity without the competitive edge often found in these sorts of collectives!

Curwen Gallery: Much of your work reminds us of a jolly version of Pieter Bruegal-in that you capture elements of the everyday in a very surreal and stylised manner. Who are your main artistic inspirations and how do they effect the work that you produce?
  
Adrian Sykes: I love Bruegal’s work and I do cite him as being a major influence upon me. Hopper as I mentioned before has been a huge influence alongside Dali, Magritte, Hockney, Stanley Spencer, Shaun Tan, Max Beckman, I could go on! The works of contemporary Yorkshire watercolourist Simon Palmer who has consistently produced some magnificent paintings full of mystery and detail has also hugely impressed me.

Path, oil on board, 90 x 45cm
£1495

Curwen Gallery: Your work is quite playful but can also be quite dark (albeit in a fairy-tale manner)- how do you feel about these two contrasting elements coexisting in your work?Is this a reflection of your own character?

Adrian Sykes: I think everyone has both these sides to their character and as an artist I am generally drawn to the more introspective side of life but not necessarily dwelling on the dark side. I suppose I’m aiming to get a balance between the two.

Curwen Gallery: Your current work is quite dreamlike with almost myth like narratives being suggested by some of the motifs that you regularly use (such as the winding bridge, the lone house etc.) Do you think these motifs mean something specific to you, unconsciously or consciously?

Adrian Sykes: Perhaps unconsciously yes I think they do mean something to me although I am mostly drawn to how they are working within the composition. Symbolically, ‘the Ladder’ for example which features quite regularly in my works, can be seen as an archetypal connection between the land of matter below with the domain of spirit above and the winding path can be seen as representing our own pathway through life, but any further meaning I will leave to the psychiatrists! I think images work upon us all in different ways and there is no one way to define how certain symbols will affect our subconscious.

Curwen Gallery: In your artist statement you say that your work visits “the land of the imagination where I transport the viewer into a world of darkly humorous and quirky characters.”

Garden House, oil on board, 37 x 18cm
£575

Adrian Sykes: I am very much drawn to a sense of intrigue in any work of art, from a door slightly ajar or a curtain blowing through an open window to a mysterious lone figure walking through the woods. I like the play of suggested narrative without being too heavy handed with the meaning as I like to leave things open to interpretation.

Often by exaggerating the ‘impossibility’ or ‘quirkiness’ of a dwelling or passageway it draws attention to its significance in our lives where it might normally get overshadowed by routine, such as, returning home to loved ones etc. By making some of these elements in my work humorous I think it also serves this purpose of drawing our attention to these important everyday activities in our lives. As John Lennon said, ‘life is what happens whilst you are making plans’.



 Curwen Gallery: Are your subjects taken partly from the real world? Are some of your landscapes based on real landscapes in the world or are they completely from your imagination?

Adrian Sykes: This particular set of work are all from my imagination. I have tried to capture a sense of memory and perhaps tap into some childhood recollections. With the elongated houses and trees for instance, I have concentrated on scale, hoping to put the viewer in a position that they might have felt as a child when the world is full of wonder and intrigue and where the scale of life is quite literally ‘awe inspiring’.

Sailing Home, oil on board, 37 x 18cm
£575

Curwen Gallery: You say you want to try to capture “the essence of places” in your work. Are these recent works inspired by real places? If so where?

Adrian Sykes: I think the ‘essence of place’ in these works is all about trying to capture a feeling that has been lost or forgotten with also the added feeling of a sense of hopefulness and peace.

 Adrian Sykes is showing his new work at Curwen Gallery from 2- 30^th April 2015.
 
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