Dominic Kennedy.

 My paintings are made from a variety of different materials.

9 Questions to Dominic Kennedy.

British artist, living and working in London.

What is your art about?

My paintings are made from a variety of different materials: oil paint, oil stick and crayon together with collaged paper, wood and felt. The surface of the paintings is important. I like working on the bare canvas, creating layers and allowing the earlier stages of the painting to show through.Then there are these re-occuring forms such as clouds, flowers, buildings and heads that appear out of a fractured, semi-abstract language.

Please tell us more about your working process, routine, your studio set up and the way you approach new artworks.

I like to work on a number of paintings over a period of time. At some point I turn them to the wall and forget about them. Then I like to return to them without too much attachment, working on top of previous layers, changing, destroying, trying to surprise myself by going in new directions. I work in the day but I prefer to work at night when it’s quiet and I can get lost in the process.

What is fertiliser for your work?

So many things, great painting, music and films. I like child art and things that are direct and spontaneous and that perhaps lie outside of the established art world. I am also always keen to discover the next stage in my work and respond to what I’ve previously made.

Who or what has recently impressed you?

I recently bought a book called, ‘Keeping Time: Plains Indian Ledger Drawings’. These are drawings made between 1865-1900 depicting tribal life and military exploits. The line, colour and space in the drawings is just great.

Have a beer with an artist of your choice? Whom?

Other artists and writers I know, it’s important to have a sense of community in which to support each other.

What’s your favourite city and why?

London – I’ve lived here 20 years. I can’t seem to leave. I work well here and feel that I’m constantly moving, progressing with my work rather than standing still. It’s a place where you can meet so many other artists, see so many things. It’s also a tough city in many ways so escaping occasionally is a necessity.

What’s your favourite restaurant and why?

Well there’s one I particularly love going to when I’m on holiday in Spain during the summer. You have to travel by ferry out to the middle of the bay in Santander and then the restaurant is in this sort of ram-shackled hut serving fresh sea food. It’s chaotic, usually rammed with people but the atmosphere is great!

What would you do with five euro found in the streets?

Buy another coffee.

Do you have any dream projects in mind that you would like to do in the future? 

I’d love to curate an exhibition abroad. This year I set up an artist run gallery in south London with my friend Howard Dyke called Ridgeway Road. To take some of the artists we have shown there and put on an exhibition in another city would really exciting.

Garden (Portrait) 2017

Oil, oil stick, crayon, coloured pencil, card, wood, felt and pins on canvas

210cm x 170cm

Ship (White) 2017

Oil, oil stick, crayon, coloured pencil on canvas

210cm x 170cm

Slowly Fading Forms 2016

Oil, oil stick, crayon, coloured pencil, wood, felt and pins on canvas

210cm x 170cm

Night Flowers 2015-2017

Oil, oil stick, crayon, coloured pencil, wood, felt and pins on canvas

210cm x 170cm

Studio View

Red Window 2016-2017

Oil, oil stick, crayon, coloured pencil, wood and felt on canvas

210cm x 170cm

Solo Exhibition

Ridgeway Road, London,UK, July 2017

Dominic Kennedy

Ridgeway Road, London, UK.

www.dominickennedy.net

All images © Dominic Kennedy

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