CREATIVE CONVERSATIONS WITH PAINTER : SAM WOOTTON
SAM Wears KEEN Men’s Yogui Art Camo Print
Sam Wootton is a bold, articulate and skilled painter, finishing an English literature degree at Kings college , he has since worked as a model, radio presenter, in journalism and as a stylist, the world is quite literally this young Artist’s oyster. From 2018, his paintings have been creating quite the stir among the London Art scene and on Tik Tok , where he’s got quite the following. Showcasing his outfits and painting processes. With his paintings featuring in exhibitions such as The factory Project held within Frieze Week 2021, with Pache Anderson and more recently at Reuben Selby’s fashion show / installation here in London, he’s gained recognition and been commissioned by Actors such as Maisie Williams for a self portrait along with musicians such as the likes of Sainte.
Sam is not only prolific, but in demand! Whilst he uses both classical and contemporary styles within his oil paintings, he has formed a unique approach when it comes to capturing his subjects, it is the way that he works within the face, through the use of colour and shapes, that he manages to create a dept and emotion to the individuals. An intimate moment with the person in the painting and the viewer left captivated. In our conversation, I forget Sam is only 23, as we discuss his career thus far, perceptions of the Art world and its challenges, his informed intellect and thriving talent exceeds expectations to that of young artist, he’s a certified one to watch.
Hi Sam, how are you today?
Life’s felt a bit on top of me as of late; but, in the words of Earl Sweatshirt, I stepped outside this morning and it was still gorgeous. World keeps spinning!
Interestingly you began studying literature and now you’re a painter, how did this change of direction come about?
I wouldn’t necessarily dub it as a changed direction, as my passion for written and spoken word is still at the forefront of who I believe I am. I read as much as I can, and fold literary inspirations into the fabric of my work where possible (both consciously and unconsciously). Finding purpose and staying busy are big things for me; it just happens that my passion for visual art is more outward facing, whereas my inclination towards literature tends to be more introspective. What I sow through literature, I reap through art.
You paint a lot of other talented people such as musicians, what is it about them that you are drawn to, as your subjects?
I’d be chatting sh*t if I tried to articulate it in any sort of detail. I’m liable to get a bit too indulgent when I start over-intellectualising my work, and in a sense, the older I get, the less I feel it’s my innate responsibility to deconstruct my own work. There’s a tension in me, having no formal arts training and surrounded by art students/ graduates- I feel a huge compulsion to smooth every edge, fill every nook and stuff every cranny with water-tight, meticulously managed intellectual work. People within the art world are terrifyingly un self-aware. I think that’s when art gives way to science, which is an idea I can get a bit un-comfy navigating, and can feel a bit overly masculine. I can do it though, which is my fatal flaw. I can deliver trash Shakespearean monologues detailing the imagined intricacies and politics working as an undercurrent for my work, but I’ll always talk myself in a circle. The unanswered questions will be knocking at my bedroom door all night. It’s a privilege, and I’m by no means apolitical, but I think sometimes the politics are more potent when they’re unspoken. What did Basquiat say? You wouldn’t ask Miles Davis why he played a particular note, right?
What’s one of the biggest challenges you face as a young artist?
Lack of money and funding. Or optics. Well, they both go hand-in-hand. I’ve been chronically online for the majority of my adult life, so I’m deeply and fundamentally aware of my online presence. When you’re working in a field which deals with real-life artefacts (I’m really out here making things with my hands!), it’s not enough to put down the brush and expect the world to engage. The next steps have to involve photography, management, curation, brand image (I maintain that this definition lies as far outside the parameters of capitalist ideology as possible) and context. My work needs hang at the same angle as the rest of my life does. As I’m an extension of my work, my digital footprint must be too. You should be able to slap one of my selfies up on the wall next to one of my classical oil paintings, spray some of my perfume in the air, project some of my TikToks on a screen, score the entire experience with one of my Spotify playlists, and they should all feel cohesive. It’s rough though. There’s always gonna be something lost, or miscommunicated. It’s also all just very whimsical and silly and embarrassing, which is fun.
Would you say that you’ve got a moment in which you will feel like you’ve made it?
I’m not massively preoccupied with the idea of ‘making it’. I’m maybe one of the busiest people I know, so if I’ve ever ‘made it’, I’d like to be blissfully unaware of that fact. I’m truly blessed and appreciative to have worked for the accolades I’ve already got lining my walls, and, whilst I can’t see myself ever taking my foot off the pedal, I also rarely linger in one place long enough to bask in my achievements. I had a quick browse through my website the other day, and, if I’m honest, I could probably shout about my ting a lot more; I’ve worked with brands and publications which I’ve idolised since I was a young teenager. It’s actually rough trying to get some respect put on your name in this life. I remind myself to feel proud when I can, and am really learning to love myself more; I’m very young, and still at the very beginning of my artistic career. Nonetheless, a text updating my family, a quick celebratory pint and a skate round central, then I’m back to the crib.
What step in your career, has been the most impactful to date?
I’d say the past year has really galvanised me. My recent arts residency during London Fashion Week for Reuben Selby was the most wonderful intersection between fashion and art. That’s exactly where I’d like to be positioned. Surrounded by incredible artists, I think it helped infuse my work with a new life it’s also invigorating when brands put their money where their mouth is and invest in young artists. Prior to that, my exhibition during Frieze Week for Pache Anderson (Coldest curator in the game!) was massively affirming.
What is a perception of being an artist that you would you like to change?
I think the entire institution of the art world has a massive issue with over formalisation, or ‘saint-hood’. I think we build artists up to be something outside the realms of normal life, outside the realms of the working classes. Whereas, in reality, that’s a myth ingrained within us in order to ascribe art value and gain commodity off of art. How else can someone justify paying an absurd amount of money if art has been worked on by someone with thought, ideas passions and deep flaws?
The idea of art in process is something which I would also like to champion, rather than art as a final result in a white-walled institution. The journey from artist to final piece is something we should focus on a little more, and the myth that the working classes shouldn’t have wide access to these worlds is one I’d like to unpick.
Best piece of advice for a future painter?
If you’ve got the stomach for it, live around your work. Put it everywhere (tastefully). Get sick of that sh*t. If you need to move a canvas out of the way to get to your fridge, or shift some paints to get to a plug socket, you’ll begin a long and turbulent relationship with your work. This conversation is life-long, and filled with jubilant highs and hateful lows, but ultimately allows you to constantly reperspectivism your work. It’s impossible to stagnate when the backdrop for your domestic performance is both mundane and ever-changing . The process of falling out of love with your work and subsequently becoming besotted with it is actually quite beautiful, and will shove a battery in your back to really make what’s important to you.
Who’s portrait would you love to paint?
Hilma af Klint, Marina Abramovic, that one fish from Shark’s Tale or myself when I’m on my deathbed.
Creative team
Photographer: JOHNNY COOKE
Art Director: KOJO HAMMOND
Produced & Interviewed by: SOPHIE EMMETT
Location: ONE HUNDRED SHOREDITCH