Locals at work - der Irische Künstler und Surfer Gary Reddin über Reisen, Inspiration & Irland

Hi Gary!
You just went back to Sligo / Ireland in last November - where did you live before? And what does it mean for you to be back?

I Studied Architecture in Dublin and graduated in 2010, after which I moved to Copenhagen to work as an architect. It was a fantastic city to live and work in and that is where I really started to explore the idea of illustration. after Denmark I moved to Shoreditch in London, which is filled with artists, creatives, and all round innovative and progressive people. It was a brilliant place to be and definitely has had a great influence on me. 

It means a lot to be back in Sligo, this is home, this is were I grew up, I am surrounded by all the things I love in life,my  family, friends, surfing, and the great out doors.

Sligo is like a hidden gem within Ireland. Its got a fantastic heritage and history, but what sets it apart from other counties is the natural environment. From the rouged cost line to the rolling mountains facilitate almost any outdoor activity you can think of, from big wave surfing to skydiving, to yoga, to eco kayak tours, to cliff diving, to rock climbing ect. its just a great place to get outside explore adventure and really live.  

Surfing and the ocean have been a big part of my life growing up. I started out as a competitive swimmer and swan for my county from a young age. It naturally lead me to surfing,  before I knew I was skipping school and hitching lifts to the beach anytime the waves were good, in 2007/08 I moved to Australia with a friend we took 8 months to drive from perth all the way along the south coast and up the east surfing in every surf spot we could find along the way.

Ya there is definitely a connection between surfing and art. When you are out in the ocean its just you and nature and that feeling is often much easier to describe with paints and a brush then with words 

Travel is very important for any artist, it helps you understand the identity and character of a place. I Love when you arrive in a new country and everything is so alien its like another world. I remember leaving the grey brutal barbican architecture of central London and landing in florida a few hours later to see chalky pastel coloured houses of Key West. The contrast was so starkly beautiful and it really stands out in my mind. 

As I've traveled I discovered that each place has a unique set of visual characteristics which often can be defined by natural colour. this became very apparent in 2008 when I was standing in the middle of and australian desert the only colour visible was the deep rich red of the iron sand. This is something I notice everywhere I go now ie. the deep blacks of bali's volcanic beaches the purple heather of the Scottish highlands, the bright red and white lone standing farm buildings of souther Sweden. 

My Inspiration comes directly from my surroundings experiences, If I've had a great day surfing I'll try to recreate it in an illustration, If I see or hear something that stands out to me like a great tv show character, a joke, a conversation, a poem, or a person I just have to draw it

I love bright colour, I think we all have a direct emotive response to colour, Colour makes me happy and I want to create art that makes people happy 

Its not difficult working for other people It can be a challenge but I really like it I enjoy getting input and its a great was to keep up to date with current graphic trends 

I'm working on 4 projects at the moment. The first is a limited edition illustration based on Ricard Mosse's infra red photography in the Congo. all profits go to charity. The second is a branding campaign for a local business, The third is an art print of Sligo town, and the forth is a collaboration with 'Outer Cell Media' on a stop motion animation.