Self-taught or art school?
I did not go to any art school or anything like that. Even though I liked art from an early age, it was never presented to me as potentially a serious career. I was sent to study cartooning under one of the top Cartoonists at that time – Mr S.C. Opatha who used to be a friend of my father. I remember going to his home every Saturday to learn cartooning for two years. Still, it was more of a hobby.
The rest is self-taught. I feel there are both advantages and disadvantages of being a self-taught artist. On one hand, it could have saved me a lot of technical mistakes that one could avoid. On the other hand, as you are not taught what not to do, you can experiment with certain things and sometimes you find things that work for you. After all your trials and errors, the whole process becomes unique to you.
If you could own one work of art what would it be?
The “Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose” by John Singer Sargent. A few years ago, I had a chance to see the original work at the National Portrait Gallery in London and I was blown away by his skills of painting light.
How would you describe your style?
I’m still experimenting with my style, once I settle with a style that I can be happy with then I will let you know.
Can you tell us about your artistic process?
Firstly, I invest my time in finding inspiration or a subject to paint, once I find my subject, I spend a significant amount of time researching and studying. After I gather enough information, I go to the sketching stage and then onto the canvas. Working on canvas is the easiest part for me.
Is narrative important within your work?
Yes, with my latest collection I make more arbitrary use of colours to express myself more mysteriously. So, colours are the language of this series which serve as a greater purpose of the narrative. I like the energy that comes with colours to stimulate our memories and thoughts. I believe these carefully selected colours would help convey my narrative and transform viewers emotionally, intellectually and be open to the possibilities of creating your own narrative.
Who are your favourite artists and why?
They are several from different art movements including Norman Rockwell, Henri Matisse, Basquiat and George Condo. Right now, my favourite artist is Howard Hodgkin because of his colour usage.
What or who inspires your art?
Like most artists, it is hard to put exactly into words where inspiration comes from, with my recent works human consciousness and the connection to the universe are the brightest sources of inspiration. Also, how technology impacts our social life obviously contributes to the realisation of many works.
Where’s your studio and what’s it like?
I have a home studio located in a little seaside town call Sai Kung in Hong Kong, it’s a spare room with a front window that juts out and lets in plenty of sunlight. The best thing about the home studio is if I’m struggling with a painting it’s easy to put the brushes down and go for a walk to the beach or have a cup of tea before I start again.
Do you have any studio rituals?
I don’t have any particular ‘rituals’ however I do find it particularly important to start the day by scrolling through my art Instagram feed looking into the work of my peers and artists that inspire my work. This process gets me in the creative mindset to produce work to the highest quality.
What are you working on currently?
I’m working on a series called “Shape of a thought II” basically it’s an extension of a series I did early this year.
Where can we buy your art?
People can approach me via my website www.koscos.net or Instagram: KosCos
