Review of 2024

As 2024 draws to an end, I’d like to take the opportunity to thank you all for your kind support of my art and also to review some personal highlights of the year.

I was fortunate to travel to some great places again this year. February started off with the first of two trips to New York City and some amazing sights, smells and sounds: along with the MoMA - one of my favourite museums…. It was also a great opportunity to fuel my passion for street and city photography.

View from the platform at Queensboro Plaza train station

In March I was able to go to Paris on the Eurostar to view the new Invader exhibition or ‘Space Station’. Paris is perhaps my favourite city for art & architecture and never disappoints.

Map of Invader mosaic tile artworks around Paris.

Early on in the year, I decided to bite the bullet and start painting Penguin Book covers on canvas. I’d avoided it up until now as several other artists were doing it but I figured my ‘niche’ could be more realistic, acrylic paint, medium size versions that focused on some of my favourite artists. This first Haring themed artwork lead to several other commssions and print editions which actually helped to save my year in what was a difficult first half of 2024….

My first and favourite book cover canvas from a series of over 20 book cover canvasses painted during 2024.

In June I was able to visit Brussels and Bruges and as well as taking in some brilliant art at the Magritte gallery, a Tracey Emin show and other fine galleries, I was able to enjoy another passion - drinking great beer. It doesn’t get any better than Belgian beer!

In June, I went to Berlin to exhibit as part of a small group show - “The Berlin Horror Picture Show’ - a horror based exhibition in a cocktail bar and gallery in the uber trendy part of Berlin. A big thank you to my sidekick artist friends Stig and FREEMAN for a great weekend!

A canvas diptych from the ‘Berlin Horror Picture show’, June, 2024.

Meanwhile in Fleet, Hampshire (my hometown), graffiti pieces based suspiciously closely on my own images of penguins started appearing on walls in town. The six pieces (and counting) are still up and will no doubt be joined by more in 2025!

Talking of Banksy, mid-year, I released a book cover based on the elusive artist, coupled with a classic H.G. Wells novel. Available in A2, A3 and A4 sizes, much to my surprise it quickly sold out and enabled me to produce more prints before the year end, including an homage to Brighton’s liberal status and a tribute to one of my favourite bands and an iconic album cover.

A happy place for me - Brighton seafront.

I am very grateful to two galleries that support and sell my art - George Thornton Art in Nottingham and Paxton + Glew in Brighton. It is important to me to work with physical galleries and for potential new customers to see my art ‘in the flesh’. I hope to work more closely with these galleries in 2025 and am thrilled to announce that I will be participating in a group show in Brighton in May, 2025. More details to follow….

Finally, a big shout out to collectors who commissioned artworks from me this year. I appreciated the requests to create something that was a little outside of my penguin comfort zone, such as this ‘Lucky Strike’ artwork, painted for a collector in Surrey. Watch this space as I have some plans for a series of non-penguin canvasses for early 2025!

“Lucky Strike” - paving the way for more non-penguin artworks in 2025!

2024. It has been a tough year. The art market in general is still in a downturn and it was even tougher in 2024 than previous years to sell a print or canvas or brick. The year was also peppered with some illnesses including a serious bout of pneumonia. But I’m optimistic for 2025 and am grateful to be able to do what I love for a living, even if it relies on some side hustles to make ends meet! Thank you to everyone for the support and wishing you a happy, healthy and prosperous 2025!

Jameson

Spring Time (Autumn in Antartica)…..