"I had quite the misfortune to be on the receiving end of a knife attack by my landlord and had to leave Glasgow, Scotland in a hurry. My partner was working in Liverpool and I moved in with him. It was meant to be temporary but we ended up staying and buying a house here.
"My studio at the moment is in my house here, so I work 10-hour days, and it's great to be able to roll out of bed and go straight to the studio—I can work right up until dinner is on the table. I've been learning as I move through the year, and at this point have settled into a routine. I start at 9am and work through to 8 or 9pm, stopping only for tea or coffee breaks, as well as a walk in the park. My preference is to work on one analogue piece at a time while simultaneously developing the next digital reference piece on my computer during tea breaks. I work six-and-a-half days a week. I use a particular brand of acrylic paint which has unique properties and for which there is only one supplier in Europe. It's a minor disaster when I run out of titanium white, so now I buy four bottles at a time!
"I did once have a studio I would drive to, and now that I’m looking to make larger works, I may relocate where I paint. Possibly a disused shop or large storage space. I'm not looking for a traditional artist space with a built in community; I'm a solitary creature at heart. A reflected northern light source with big windows, a sink, lots of storage space, many plug sockets and a comfortable couch for visitors." —Naive John
Naive John’s solo show, Hello, will be on view at Seasons LA from March 5—April 17, 2022. Photos by Evan Pricco
