Inkie is a London-based painter and

street artist A street artist is a person who makes art in public places. Street artists include portrait artists, caricaturists, graffiti artists, muralists and people making crafts. Street artists can also refer to street performers such as musicians, acroba ...

, originally from

Clifton, Bristol Clifton is both a suburb of Bristol, England, and the name of one of the city's thirty-five council wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells. The eastern part of the suburb lies within the ward of Clifton Do ...

. He is cited as being part of Bristol's

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

heritage, along with

Banksy Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed and the subject of speculation. Active since the 1990s, his satirical street art and subversive epigrams ...

, 3D and Nick Walker.

Career

Inkie began working as part of ''Crime Incorporated Crew'' (also known as the "CIC" or the Crime inc.crew) in 1983, along with Felix and Joe Braun. He was the head of the many artists arrested in 1989 during "Operation Anderson", the UK's largest ever graffiti bust. He arranged 1998's ''Walls on Fire'' event with Banksy, on the site of the future

At-Bristol We The Curious (previously At-Bristol or "@Bristol") is a science and arts centre and educational charity in Bristol, England. It features over 250 interactive exhibits over two floors, and members of the public and school groups can also en ...

centre. He has subsequently worked in the

video game industry The video game industry encompasses the development, marketing, and monetization of video games. The industry encompasses dozens of job disciplines and thousands of jobs worldwide. The video game industry has grown from niches to mainstream. , ...

, including some time as head of creative design at

Sega is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, r ...

, where his work was included in ''

Jet Set Radio (originally released in North America as ''Jet Grind Radio'') is a 2000 action game developed by Smilebit and published by Sega for the Dreamcast. The player controls a member of a youth gang, the GGs, as they use inline skates to traverse Tok ...

''. Inkie was one artist present to do live painting at the launch of Banksy's book ''Bristol: Home Sweet Home''. Inkie has likened the time spent training as a graffiti artist to that of

classical musicians Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical m ...

. He now teaches art and graphic design to young children and college students.

Influences

Inkie's works have been described as "diverse", incorporating styles from

Maya architecture Maya architecture spans several thousands of years, several eras of political change, and architectural innovation before the Spanish colonization of the Americas. Often, the buildings most dramatic and easily recognizable as creations of the Ma ...

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

, Mouse & Kelly,

Alphonse Mucha Alfons Maria Mucha (; 24 July 1860 – 14 July 1939), known internationally as Alphonse Mucha, was a Czech painter, illustrator and graphic artist, living in Paris during the Art Nouveau period, best known for his distinctly stylized and decorat ...

, the Arts and Crafts movement and

Islamic geometry Mathematics during the Golden Age of Islam, especially during the 9th and 10th centuries, was built on Greek mathematics (Euclid, Archimedes, Apollonius) and Indian mathematics (Aryabhata, Brahmagupta). Important progress was made, such as full ...

Works

''CIC'' painted a mural in the canteen of

South Gloucestershire and Stroud College South Gloucestershire and Stroud College, also known as SGS College, is a college of further education and higher education based in South Gloucestershire and Stroud, England. It was established in February 2012 following the merger of Filton Co ...

, where Inkie and Felix Braun were students. Inkie's works were featured in a 2009 exhibition at Bristol's

Royal West of England Academy The Royal West of England Academy (RWA) is Bristol's oldest art gallery, located in Clifton, Bristol, near the junction of Queens Road and Whiteladies Road. Situated in a Grade 2* listed building, it hosts five galleries and an exhibition program ...

and he curated 2009's

Ibiza Ibiza (natively and officially in ca, Eivissa, ) is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of the Balearic Islands, in Spain. Its l ...

street art festival, ''Urban in Ibiza''. He hosted a show of his works in 2010 for which 25% of the proceeds would be donated to

Southmead Hospital Southmead Hospital is a large public National Health Service hospital, situated in the area of Southmead, though in Horfield ward, in the northern suburbs of Bristol, England. It is part of the North Bristol NHS Trust. The 800-bed Brunel Buildi ...

cochlear implant A cochlear implant (CI) is a surgically implanted neuroprosthesis that provides a person who has moderate-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss with sound perception. With the help of therapy, cochlear implants may allow for improved speech und ...

programme. His works have included murals in buildings in the Bristol area, including a friend's restaurant in

Keynsham Keynsham ( ) is a town and civil parish located between Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. It has a population of 16,000. It was listed in the Domesday Book as ''Cainesham'' (as it is pronounced), which is believed to mean the home of Sai ...

and

Clifton Clifton may refer to: People *Clifton (surname) *Clifton (given name) Places Australia * Clifton, Queensland, a town **Shire of Clifton *Clifton, New South Wales, a suburb of Wollongong *Clifton, Western Australia Canada *Clifton, Nova Scotia ...

pub (after being taken over by former video director

Bill Butt Bill Butt is a British filmmaker, artist/designer, television director, writer and producer. Butt produced the '' Eyewitness'' television series during the 1990s and has directed music videos and designed album covers. History Butt was lighting en ...

). He has taken part in Bristol's annual Upfest, the largest free urban paint festival in Europe. In August 2011 and 2012 Inkie was named as the organiser of a major street art event in Bristol, '' See No Evil'', which involved painting the buildings of an entire street, turning it into Europe's largest outdoor art gallery. Nelson Street, in the city centre, was painted by a large number of international graffiti artists over a two-week period. Between 30 January and 29 February 2013, Inkie's work was featured at

Art Below Ben Moore (born 25 May 1978)Nick Curtis''London Evening Standard'', 25 May 2010. is a British art curator, entrepreneur and artist. He is the founder and curator of Art Below, a contemporary art organisation that places art in public spaces and ...

's first "pop up"

billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

show in

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

. For the show, billboard space used normally for advertising featured a mix of

urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

and

contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic com ...

. A curated selection of 20 billboards flanked the major

New Orleans Mardi Gras The holiday of Mardi Gras is celebrated in all of Louisiana, including the city of New Orleans. Celebrations are concentrated for about two weeks before and through Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday (the start of lent in the Western ...

parade routes. Running alongside the billboard show was an exhibition of the artists original works at

Gallery Orange Gallery or The Gallery may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Art gallery ** Contemporary art gallery Music * Gallery (band), an American soft rock band of the 1970s Albums * ''Gallery'' (Elaiza album), 2014 album * ''Gallery'' (Gr ...

in the

French Quarter The French Quarter, also known as the , is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. After New Orleans (french: La Nouvelle-Orléans) was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city developed around the ("Old Squ ...

. Scenes and moments from this exhibition were screened on the Art Below web site in April 2012.

References

{{authority control English graffiti artists Public art in England Living people Artists from Bristol 20th-century English painters English male painters 21st-century English painters 1960s births 1970s births 20th-century English male artists 21st-century English male artists