Steven Quinn is a London-based artist born in Belfast. Obsessed by collages, street photography and paintings, Quinn likes to combine his own photography with cut-outs from old magazines and play with imagery to create often apocalyptic, sometimes humorous narratives. His most current themes are domesticizing nuclear, political and intergalactic conflicts. Quinn graduated with 1st Class honours from the University of Ulster –MFA and has shown his work alongside names such as Damien Hirst and Sarah Lucas at Tate Britain. He has also exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery, the renowned Photographers gallery in Soho, the James Freeman Gallery and in various venues throughout London. Quinn has also been showing his work overseas: New York in 2009, Frankfurt in 2014 and, more recently, at the ARC Gallery in Chicago for the “I can’t breathe” exhibition.
When Quinn describes his work, he says “It’s a big melting pot where everything informs the other; a collage of inspiration, style, backgrounds. Most of my ideas strand from science and to date I think one of the coolest things I have done was to have had my DNA tested and printed as a portrait for The National Portrait Gallery”.
Self-taught or art school?
Looking back I suppose I’m lucky that from a young as I can remember I knew what I wanted to do. Which is whatever “THIS” is. I had been taught throughout the art education system that to get into galleries you needed an art degree. So that is what I did. That said… where I was digesting most of my art was in fine art galleries & museums. Now with lines blurred between what art is and what context it needs to be viewed you don’t have to want to exhibit or show your work in that way OR in any way, it should be made because you enjoy it OR at the results from having made it. Although I would say you do need to educate yourself and be educated in no way should that have to come from formal schooling. Art schools originally were supposed to be inclusive places to be expressive, rebel & learn. I’d hope nowadays students from the likes of Goldsmiths would have ideas akin to those of The Bauhaus but I suspect commerce has been gorging on the soul of its teachings.
I could go on about this for ages but I went to art school and then back for a masters. Essentially that also requires a lot of self-teaching so… both.
If you could own one work of art what would it be?
The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch. I just can’t believe such a modern piece of work is 500 years old. I’ve seen various versions and reproductions of it over the years. High res scans and animations of it but still I can’t explain how it exists and how it’s 500 years old. I would love to know just how it was viewed back then and how people reacted to it.
How would you describe your style?
There are a few different ways I work. Different mediums etc but primarily people may know me as a collage artist. Finally, I’ve been able to kick my obsession with Trump I’m back to sometimes pretty often humorously apocalyptic collages.
Can you tell us about your artistic process?
Sometimes I know exactly what I’m going to do or make/ try and say. Mostly I’m a big fan of the ‘happy accident’ so I buy lots of source material. I have to spend a lot of time ripping up and sifting through books & magazines. I try not to waste anything so anything that could be interesting I keep. Basically, things get sorted into drawers with loose similarities. Birds, shapes, colours things like that. Lastly, I start cutting out people. You could say it’s like a chef getting everything in front of him in little bowls before actually cooking. Usually, there are some stand out ingredients and I’ll know what to do with them after that it really is quite random. For me, the skill is knowing what works together. There has to be a balance of colour or contrast. Sometimes interesting narratives pop up that or beautiful, complimentary, jarring, surreal, funny or offensive. Or a mix of them all. Although it is a process led activity it really is about the final result.
Is narrative important within your work?
I would say probably not although if I’m asked to describe why I like something a narrative would evolve in my head. I’m not conscious of any particular narrative at the time of making something but I would acknowledge a loose one may have existed for me at the time.
Who are your favourite artist and why?
Can I have two? Two really stand out for me as a way of thinking and a way into the art I wanted to make. The first time I saw and read about ‘Fountain’ by Marcel Duchamp I must have been 13 or 14. It was also around that time I would have bought The Sex Pistols album ‘Never mind the bollocks’. For me the two movements are similar and intertwined in my mind. Setting me off on my own path. Around the time of graduating, I got really into Robert Rauschenberg. I’m into a lot of varied things. A collage of art history and really loved the pop art movement but I saw his ‘Monogram’ sculpture in New York a year ago and felt actually things don’t have to be so pointed and brash. If you were to describe Dadaism as a more teenage punkish reaction to the fine art world maybe Rauschenberg is a more relaxed more grown-up reaction to it. Where maybe one day I’ll fit in.
What or who inspires your art?
I don’t necessarily think the visual things I make have to be inspired by the visual things I have seen. Like most people now I’m a big consumer of information. Music, visual art, podcasts, movies, games or news etc I don’t really get a lot of time just sitting doing nothing. It’s hard to define but somehow ideas are floating in the ether. I know that’s a cliche but it does seem to be true.
Where’s your studio and what’s it like?
A few years ago I moved to sunny Barking. East London. I have previously been a resident in Hackney downs & Hackney Wick but it’s getting hard out there, for galleries and artists. Rents are high. Currently in Barking it is at least an affordable space although obviously, I’d love a massive warehouse with a busy metropolis out the front and a secluded forest out the back. My space right now is the usual organised chaos. Paper all over the place. Where finished artwork goes into a nice set of vintage architect drawers and I try and navigate around finishing new work with limited space.
Do you have any studio rituals?
Strong coffee and music. It’s hard to be ritualistic with a process that’s very random but those are my two things. I do try and finish things as a discipline. Advice I’m currently guilty of ignoring. With the time I’ve had recently I’ve been trying out a number of new ideas and old ones, I’ve finally gotten round to so a few projects are in flux/ limbo.
What are you working on currently?
Currently, I am experimenting with some inks for screen print tests. I am not sure where that will go but screen printing is always fun and can throw up some unexpected results. I’m not a “printer” so for me a millimetre out is a good thing.
I also collect and hoard random objects. I’ve recently been trying to combine random it’s of junk into I suppose what you could call sculpture. One-piece has taken a vaguely human form so I’ve been calling it a robot. I also don’t really know where that will go.
The pandemic has also allowed me time to make work just for fun. Not just about getting prints out and shows on. SO, I have recently started a sketch booking again. Taking bags of offcuts from magazines I don’t use but don’t throw away. I’ve been making simple colour & form collages too.
I am also about to make a lot of new work too. I have many collages I think I’m decided on but I just haven’t committed and glued them together yet.
I am also currently trying to get into space. Which obviously I would love to do but the odds of it actually happening are so low. I’ve just submitted to round two of the DearMoon project. A lunar tourism mission and art project conceived and financed by Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa. It will make use of a SpaceX Starship on a private spaceflight flying a single circumlunar trajectory around the Moon. The passengers will be Maezawa, 8 civilians, and one or two crew members. Ideally, I’ll be on that ship.
Where can we buy your work?
Recently I’ve been talking to galleries in Glasgow & Manchester. I don’t really sell or show work back home in Belfast but it’s a step closer to home I suppose. I think it’s inevitable I do have a show back home in the near future. There is also talk of happenings in Margate but a lot of things a very up in the air at the moment as you can imagine.
You can always chat with me via Instagram @stevenquinn_collage or Leontia Gallery steven-quinn is a good way for sales and commissions.
