Hey Peter, let’s get the important question out of the way. Fish and chips with, or without vinegar?

Definitely with. And salt.

Tell us a bit about your creative background

I’ve been an artist from a very early age. The first picture I remember doing was a drawing of the mask of Tutankhamun when I was 7. I hated everything about school apart from Art and the Dark Room they had. It had a red light outside which I could turn on and nobody could come in so I spent most of my time there or in the Art Room itself. There wasn’t much they could do with me so eventually they left me alone and stopped trying to make me go to other lessons. I got into Tattooing around ‘96 and started creating copies of Old Masters. BSE or ‘Foot and Mouth Disease’ then closed all the agricultural land that the Art Fairs were held on which is where my agent was selling for me, so tattooing became the only option left to me for the next 26 years. I came back to painting about 6 years ago and back to creating genuine fakes of Old Masters. 

Where are you based?

I live in Fleetwood with my wife and dogs. There are young people around who sometimes use the fridge. 

What kind of art do you create?

I paint commissioned portraits to subsidise my tattooing and paint reproductions of Old Masters, mostly to satisfy my own sense of creativity but occasionally to order. 

Who or What inspires you?

I don’t believe a person has to be a world famous artist or person to be an inspiration. They can be the guy down the road who rescues animals, or a friend who is a natural when it comes to mechanical engineering, the woman who paints using a red I cannot replicate, writes thankyou letters and fiction based on her own life, the local vet, the artist who has a way of painting that she embellishes using her fingernails. Inspiration is closer to home than an untouchable celebrity who sponsors branded sportswear.

What is this exhibition about?

The Art of Forgery is about showing how the art world and its pundits are a bit of a fraud themselves. Critics appear to make or break an artist, but the reality is most of these people are just talking heads. If somebody likes a piece of work then they don’t need a critic telling them how good or bad that piece is. Andy Warhol once said that whilst all the critics are trying to decide whether or not a piece of art is good or bad, the artist is best just making more of it. What the critics and ‘experts’ think is ultimately irrelevant other than to those paying huge sums for it and massaging their egos. A lot of the art world is just rich people trying to impress other rich people, or so Douglas Adams once said. This exhibition is ultimately about showing how a convincing copy of a work worth millions can be created for a minimal cost with very basic, in some cases reclaimed, materials.

Do you currently have any other projects you’re working on?

Yeah, I usually have about a dozen paintings on the go at any given time so I’ve a bit of a reputation for having a prolific output. Currently I’ve got an ongoing project painting portraits of the artists involved with Libertalia and Collective Moves entitled Pirates of Libertalia. Also a series of drawings of elephants in the style of David Shepherd, but they keep selling before I can get a collection together. There’s also a collection of Silent Movie stars underway.

What’s next for you?

The next project for an exhibition is going to be based on something traditional as a subject using the classical approach of Caravaggio but with contemporary models and settings. I was thinking of The Seven Virtues and The Seven Deadly Sins, so it seems that 14 is the magic number.

Where else can people see your work and learn more about you?

Most of my commissions come through word of mouth although I use Facebook, Instagram and my website to promote my work. I try and keep the Social Media side of things as minimal as possible though as it can be too much of a distraction. 

https://www.artrabbit.com/events/the-art-of-forgery-hive-blackpool-blackpool