1. Name: Chris Gambrell
2. Age: 40 Years
3. Where are you from?
Bristol, UK
4. Where are you currently located?
Bristol, UK
5. Education:
I have a degree in Illustration
6. Current Occupation:
I would be tempted to raise my hand if somebody asked 'are there any Illustrators in the room?' however, as anyone who has followed me for some time will tell you – I play around a lot. I am painting quite a lot for commissions these days, so possibly illustrator/painter.
7. First Job:
Difficult question, have done many things for money which I wouldn't venture forth here! Illustrating fashion for web content back when animation was jumpy and you had made a style of that, and possibly first real job aside from student jobs was as a teacher, which allowed me to travel from country to country.
8. What led to the decisions of becoming an artist?
Because I have always wanted to interpret everything I see in front of me, whether it be through sculpture or drawing and in the future animation. When I was young and printing paper meant an endless trail of perforated possibility – I would work to fill it from one end to the other using any tools I could find. I would fill a sketchbook a week by sitting in the centre of the city and drawing anyone and everyone who passed me by. In short, it's what I knew and what I loved.
9. You have a unique style and colour palette. How did you reach this stage?
As a kid, I was fascinated with getting it right and had books and tools helping me to measure accuracy in drawing but as time went by I let go of a lot of this as I preferred the getting the gist of something over dictating what something actually is. I would compare what I do to the short story version of visual storytelling. I like the idea that the audience can have some say, some guesswork and some areas of colour which they have to fill in for themselves, in my view, my images should be mixing with the palette of reference of the person observing, in that way, it is something different for everybody and ultimately – it is not just about me and my ego, it''s more of a dialogue with back and forth.
10. Tell us more about your influences.
Lorenzo Mattotti for his composition, for his idea of the page as a stage, his colour use and endless inventiveness.
Euan Uglow for his treatment of figures, the colours he uses to describe flesh tones.
The sculptors Giacometti, Henry Moore and Brancusi for the way they dealt with figures and their use of negative space.
11. What excites you the most about the creative process?
Always the initial part, the warm-up, the relaxing into a drawing. The most successful pieces of my own work have retained a sense of play and spontaneity from beginning to end. I endeavour to keep energy in my work and to avoid over-labouring.
12. When do you know a piece is complete?
Difficult question, I work intuitively and therefore do not often have an idea how things will look once complete, this is why I am prolific as there is a high degree of experimentation and naturally this produces both success and 'the lead up to it'. I tend to stop when something feels right.
13. Can you share your favourite work and tell us why is it so?
It would be this drawing which was based on a Carolina Herrera show. It's simple, bold and done with only a handful of colours and embodied the movement of the bodies and garments
14. Describe the place where you work from.
I work from my studio which is full light. I also always work to music, artist and genre really depends on mood and what I want to achieve but two staples are Bon Iver and Christine and the Queens.
15. What 5 pieces advice would you give to the students who want to follow a similar line of work ?
A – get a sketchbook and share everything with that sketchbook, don't feel judged in the sketchbook.
B – try not to be precious, move on from what seems like a mistake, you will find that if you keep producing – those things you considered an issue will be naturally revisited and resolved.
C – Don't cling to one tool, play, try the same thing in paint, pencil, clay, collage etc. It's all about seeing something from different angles.
D – Self-belief, using sharing platforms such as Instagram means that people who like your work will find you
E – Be clear about what you want from the start and try to set goals for yourself, it doesn't matter if these change.
To know more follow Chris on Instagram @gambrell_
ASTMAG
A series of interviews and articles from & about global creatives. Also an attempt to form a community of awe-inspiring artists, designers, photographers, film-makers & writers.