Jack Savage is a fine art photographer and conceptual artist. Born in Northampton, England (1980) – He was educated at Nottingham University, where he carries an MA in American Studies and Film. Winner of over 100 international professional photography awards. Savage works from a spacious studio, and produces conceptual fine art which includes studio portraiture, landscapes, street photography, mixed media photographic art, and digitalized psychedelic creations from what he labels “His Unconscious Soul”. To date Savage’s works have been exhibited in Milan, Italy – Siena, Italy – Athens, Greece, and Arles, France, and Brighton and London, UK.
‘My latest series of images showcases my work within mixed media photographic genres – studio portrait photography -painting and graffiti – created as a contemporary celebration for my love of 1980’s street art – with my usual dose of Film Noir aesthetics. The work of artists such as Richard Hambleton, Keith Haring and Jean Michel Basquiat inspires these works of contemporary art, my intention being to create a new brand of psychedelic and Film Noir influenced mixed media artistry, using a colourful palette to transform conventional studio portraiture to something new, and visually impactful. The guerrilla, underground and transgressive nature of these artists works have proven inspirational to my creation of these contemporary photographic creations.
Traditionally street art evolved side by side with Krautrock, Hip Hop and musical culture – so my prior career as a rare record LP collector and dealer proved invaluable during the creative process. Not for the first time, my work provides a link between music, literature, culture and the art world. For essentially – this is an art movement that is similar to hip hop, in that both are engaged in social and political discourse. The period of Lockdown and The Corona Virus and the Black Lives Matter movement – then proved to be fertile ground to make such subversive expressions through the creation of mixed media artworks’. Jack Savage.
Self Taught or Art School?
I am a self-taught photographer and digital artist, although I did go to university to study American History and Film and carry an MA from Nottingham University. I hope that my work is a by-product of this training in a completely different discipline.
How would you describe your style?
I have many different styles and facets to my work, which is always evolving and morphing into something new. I would describe my style as bold, graphic, and painterly. I first came to prominence through monochromatic photo manipulations that were heavily influenced by the cinema of Film Noir (1920 –1950). Noirish themes of subterfuge, mystery, femme fatales, forbidden sexuality and criminological storytelling converge and splinter off in differing imaginative realms.
I then moved on to producing my own brand of psychedelic – krautrock inspired LP art – incorporating elements of photographic montage- that were inspired by the musical genre of Psychedelia from Germany during the late 1960s and early 1970s and Italian Film music of the same period. Music that was innovative, challenging and experimental – pushing boundaries musically and artistically. This is my contemporary take of the era! The LP covers of this period were outlandish, daring and colourful in scope, a reflection of the progressive and experimental Rock music, an era that produced a great era of bands such as Can, Faust, Guru Guru, Neu and Kraftwerk! My most recent series of works are more mixed media-based (see above) a series of artworks titled – “Contemporary Photographic Street Art” (2020).
I also haven’t forgotten my roots within conventional street photography – and enjoy nothing more than venturing out with my camera to document new places and people through a traditionalist monochromatic lens. Here I am mainly looking to document a raw, naturalistic and visceral element to the towns and cities of England.
If you could own one piece of art what would it be?
If I could get my hands on one piece of art it would have to be an original “Shadowman” piece from Richard Hambleton. I absolutely adore his work and was quite devastated once he passed away in 2017. I am also an avid lover of Black music, particularly Jazz – and have always admired the music and paintings of Miles Davis, which in my opinion remain criminally undervalued within the art world.
Can you tell us about your artistic process?
The artistic process usually begins in-camera, either with studio portraits, street photography or some landscapes. I use a variety of different cameras to capture images before I subject them to the psychedelia of my mind in Photoshop and on canvas. My recent experimentation with paints and acrylics and introduction of differing mediums has certainly proved challenging to say the very least!
Luckily, I am an Adobe certified expert in Photoshop CC and teach from my studio, so in that respect – I am able to articulate and perfect my ideas. The overall goal is the creation of a multi-layered piece with deep psychological relevance to my own life, spiritual aesthetic and experience.
Is narrative important within your work?
Narrative and storytelling are of paramount importance within my oeuvre of artworks. Historically cinema and film remain my greatest inspiration and influence. I have been a movie buff since childhood – and my work is centred around the creation of my own cinematic visions, based upon my own life and experience. I also have a great love for particular cinematic genres such as Noir, Horror and Sci-Fi, striving to feed my unconscious creativity, to produce something unreal from the imagined future. It is this trust in the unconscious process when it comes to creating art that takes my work in many exciting directions.
Who are your favourite artists and why?
My most cherished artists are – in no particular order -Richard Hambleton, for his pioneering and dark brand of 1980’s street art which, in his own words “painted the town black” with shadow men. I love the idea of Hambleton’s shadow being literally infused within his canvas –the streets of New York city – creating seminal and timeless paintings that still remain relevant, modern and street today. I am also a great admirer of Miles Davis for his exquisite paintings, bold, brutal and exquisite in their expression of the black experience. Like myself – Miles was self-taught. His style is right up my alley – sharp, bold with bright colours on dark backgrounds with characters that seemingly want to escape from the very canvas that they are painted upon. Other artists I admire include Basquiat, Geiger and Haring.
What or who inspires your art?
I have a multitude of inspirations that inform my artworks. The first love as I have explained earlier, is cinema, in particular the Golden age of Hollywood and cinema of Film Noir. Another inspiration comes from my prior career as a rare record LP dealer/seller and my fascination with psychedelic art and music. I strive to create modern art imbued with the same free-thinking, innovative and experimental approach as that of the musical genre of “Krautrock” (1967-1975).
Born out of the wreckage of Post War Germany, “Krautrock” or “Kosmische Musik” is a genre of experimental and innovative rock music played by artists blending elements of Psychedelia, Electronica and various other types of Avant-Garde influences. The music itself pushed artistic and musical boundaries by being challenging and experimental in scope. The album LP covers from this period were outlandish, daring and colourful in scope, a reflection of this era of Rock music that produced such great bands as Can, Kraftwerk, Guru Guru and Faust.
In more recent times, over the last year my focus has shifted more towards Contemporary art and mixed media creations – whilst still infusing my trademark brand of Film Noir and “Krautrockian” aesthetics within the artworks. I think I have started to move in this direction, partly due to buying quite a few art pieces for my own collection and visiting galleries up and down the UK.
Where’s your studio and what is it like?
My studio is a large factory building located in Northampton, England. I occupy the entire basement of the building – which is large and sprawling space – perfect for running workshops, training students and the creation of conceptual artistry. I have a large well-equipped photography studio and computer area from which to teach classes to students of all abilities.
Do you have any studio rituals?
I don’t really have any particular studio rituals other than being extremely punctual for work. I am a stickler for preparation too – so an early start proves very beneficial for my classes and workflow.
What are you working on currently?
My current series is called “Contemporary Photographic Street Art” – my attempt to create mixed media artworks from a modern photographic standpoint. All of my previous influences (explained above) converge within this ongoing project – which I would describe as bold, colourful, experimental and political. Here my camera and post-processing skills act as my brush, adding layer upon layer of colour, texture, ink, paint, acrylics and pen alongside my trademark light and shadows. The series also retains a criminological bent – a carry on from my previous work photographing Contemporary Film Noir, a Technicolour version of the same cinematic concepts of Shadow men, femme fatales, a dark unspoken sexuality, combined or should I say joined together, by murderous ambiguous plotlines.
I am also exhibiting at the Fitzrovia based Zari Gallery – and creating work as part of a collaborative duo called INFLUX – with my friend of 20 years and fellow artist Dominic Abbey. Our art is an INFLUX AFROCENTRIC ART COLLABORATION – borne out of multiracial Britain – protesting the pain of racial injustice from a Black British, and British Romanic perspective. Here we also draw upon a rich and vivid colour palette, a representation of Dominic’s Caribean roots, and conceive upon our mixed media works from my studio in Northampton.
Where can we buy your art?
My art is available for sale as first editions on my website www.jacksavage.co.uk. Additionally, you can purchase works from the Zari Gallery, Saatchi Art and The Artwista Gallery – Berlin.
artwista.com/artist/Jack-Savage/450/overview
life-framer.com/photographer/jack-savage
