Poser Acrylic on Paper 2009
Pursuit Study Oil on canvas 2010
These Shards of You (and me) mixed media and glass on paper 120 x 90 cm 2012
1.If you weren’t an artist, what else would you be?
Hip-hop producer. I still believe it will happen for me.
2. Can you tell us more about your work and what are the main ideas you would like to express? As an actor the concept of fame for me has always been a source of fascination but also resentment and disgust. We now live in a cultureless society ravaged by reality shows, false idols and the gross sexualisation of our youth. I’ve always seen this ominous correlation between the relentless pursuit for fame and human mortality. I tend to focus my subjects on young children because, in the world’s current sorry state, they have never been more impressionable, vulnerable and victimised in the way they are today. They also form a metaphor for me to expose our own regressive and dependent condition induced by the alienating distractions of a commodified existence.
3. How do you start the process of making work?
I begin with the seed of a vague idea and then explore and develop it through meticulous planning – gathering a moodboard of imagery, automatic writing and sketching out potential compositions, trying as best I can to translate what’s going on in my head to paper. Quite often the final outcome turns out to be completely different and more dynamic to what is initially visualised. I’ve never been the kind of artist to just attack their canvas from scratch and ‘see what happens’. The main composition must first be established.
4. Do you consider the viewer, when making your work?
Yes and no. As an artist, people will either love or hate my work, especially with the darker subjects I deal with. If people respond well to it, then that’s a great feeling, but if people don’t then I couldn’t care less. People are entitled to their opinions, but I create for myself because I am passionate about something intensely personal I want to communicate through my art. Of course the viewer is needed to complete that conversation, and I absolutely value that, but it doesn’t mean I feel the need to please or pander to anyone. I think most artists should have that attitude. However, if I’m working for a client or on a collaboration, then yes, the viewer becomes high priority – especially if there are commercial expectations.
5. Name 3 artists that have inspired your work?
Antony Micallef, Guy Denning, Hermann Nitsch.
6.Name three of your least favourite artists ?
I’m not a fan of conceptual art or anything that has a whiff of Tracey Emin about it. For me, a true artist is someone who exhibits an undeniable technical talent with well-executed and intelligent ideas.
7. What defines something as a work of art?
It’s so simple and yet the most impossible thing to define. For me, art works
when you can’t explain why it works. It just does. The whole thing is a never-ending paradox. You feel something; you see something in a light that you’ve never seen it before. I actually think a piece of art is magic when curiosity ignites a burning desire to discover more about the artist behind the work, a desire to have a conversation with them. That’s quite rare.
8. In times of austerity, do you think art has a moral obligation to respond topically?I don’t think art has a moral obligation to anything or anyone, but there are always fluctuating ‘trends’ that the art business will buy into and exploit. In that case I can only see ‘trends’ in art as harmful. Personally I see no obligation; I’m never trying to be topical or ‘relevant’ or create a new trend. I simply react to the status-quo because I want to and it is impossible not to be affected by it.
9. Anytime, any place – which artist’s body would you most like to inhabit?
Francis Bacon or H.R. Giger.
10.What is your favourite ism?
Postmodernism.
11. What was the most intelligent thing that someone said or wrote about your work?
“Jonny Burt opens the door for reality to walk through”, Michael Organ.
OR:
“If art makes you uncomfortable it’s doing its job. Satire is especially successful when you can feel a definite opinion and perhaps even disdain from the artist due to the jarring nature of the work. A lot of Jonny’s work made me feel somewhat uncomfortable.” Wallbreakers.
12. And the dumbest?
“It’s a bit too much for me.”
13. Which artists would you most like to rip off, sorry, I mean appropriate as a critique of originality and authorship?
Conor Harrington maybe. He has the most exquisite blend of traditional fine art and street art techniques. It’s the ultimate juxtaposition.
14. Do you care what your art costs? State your reasons!
Of course. I’m more emotional than logical, though. I have to feel comfortable with the figure. There are obvious factors like materials and size of the artwork, but it really depends on how much the artwork means to me personally. There are certain pieces that I have such a strong connection to that if the price isn’t right, I would much rather keep the artwork for myself. From that perspective I wouldn’t be afraid to charge something shameless.
15. If Moma and the Tate and the Pompidou wanted to acquire one of your works each, which would you want them to have?
It’s What’s On The Outside, Big Brother or These Shards of You and Me.
16. What’s next for you?
I’m collaborating with various fashion designers at the moment and also working with a nightclub in Knightsbridge which has Hirst and Banksy on the walls, so that’s exciting. I’m in talks with galleries regarding representation so will hopefully have shows scheduled at some point within the year. I’ll be in L.A. for the summer and would love to have a show there; I think my work could thrive somewhere like that.
