HELLO JON, THANK YOU FOR JOINING 4BYSIX’S FIRST AUCTION OF 2026 AND FOR TAKING THE TIME TO SPEAK TO US. AS AN INTRODUCTION, HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR ART PRACTICE TO SOMEONE ENCOUNTERING YOUR WORK FOR THE FIRST TIME, AND WHAT FIRST DREW YOU TO USING SKULLS AND STILL LIFE AS CENTRAL MOTIFS?

Hello! It’s always a pleasure working with you all so thank you so much for having me back. To be concise, I would just say I’m a full-time painter working mainly with acrylic paints on canvas, but I also do a fair bit of drawing and sculpting. The skulls and still life works seemed like good art historical content to work from, but I wanted to see how I could change them up a bit.

DO YOU SEE YOUR SKULL PAINTINGS, AND THEIR IDEA OF THE SKULL AS THE “SUBSTRATE ON WHICH THE SOUL IS ADHERED", A STATEMENT ON LIFE AND WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HUMAN, AS A WAY OF ENTERING INTO THAT LINEAGE AND CARRYING THOSE HISTORICAL CONVERSATIONS FORWARD IN YOUR OWN VISUAL LANGUAGE?

I do! I find the skull interesting because we’ve all got them. We’re all basically the same, but on that substrate hangs so much difference. Skulls are usually used in a morbid sense, but I see my skull paintings as being full of life, optimism, and the beauty of humanity. I hope these paintings make people think more about the icon and what it can mean. They might be more about human spirit than an actual skull.

THE BOOKS IN YOUR STILL LIFE PAINTINGS FEEL CAREFULLY CHOSEN AND DEEPLY INTENTIONAL. ARE THEY DRAWN FROM YOUR PERSONAL COLLECTION, AND DOES LITERATURE PLAY A SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN SHAPING THEIR PURPOSE AND MEANING WITHIN YOUR WORK?

excellent question. The books are very curated. I’ve been a massive fan of art since I was old enough to pick up a book. As a kid I was fascinated with ancient things and over time I immersed myself in art history. I pull a lot from my own library when working on these still life paintings, but I give myself room to change things up a bit. I wouldn’t say literature plays a big role, but when choosing the books I like there to be connections of some sort between the artists portrayed on the books. That can be loose at times, but there’s always a connection.

YOU RECENTLY MADE A PIECE FOR 4BYSIX ON SOME TARPAULIN, CAN YOU TELL US HOW THE PROCESS WAS AND IF THE MATERIAL IMPACTED YOUR COHESIVE PROCESS OF LINE, COLOUR, AND TEXTURE?

I wasn’t sure how the paint would work on the tarpaulin so I tested a small piece first. Sometimes acrylic can easily scrape off if the surface is slick (especially if it’s unprimed), but this did not and was actually really nice and durable to work on! I was able to carry out my usual process and the line work actually felt better than working on canvas!

CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT THE WORK YOU HAVE MADE FOR 4BYSIX? WHAT WERE YOUR MAIN INFLUENCES AND CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT THE COMPOSITION? 

The work I made this time around is a little different. I actually went back to my old work for inspiration. I was drawing these alligators back in 2016/2017 and never got around to painting too many of them. The world feels heavy right now and I wanted some imagery that felt light and playful. Personified animals bring back that wonderment and joy of childhood. They’re slightly comical and playful, but also feel slightly adult. The images are fun on their own, but pairing them with words makes you think a little more.

FOLLOWING THE THOUGHT ON RICH LINEAGE THROUGHOUT ART HISTORY, AS SUSTAINABILITY IS AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT CONVERSATION IN ART AND BEYOND, HOW DO YOU APPROACH SUSTAINABILITY IN YOUR PRACTICE, WHETHER IN TERMS OF MATERIALS, PROCESSES, OR THE BROADER IMPACT OF YOUR WORK?

This is slightly embarrassing, but to be honest, I’ve not really thought about it when it comes to my practice. I try to live sustainably day to day. All the small things add up and just doing the little things can make a big impact over time. I guess that carries over to my practice in a few ways. I always reuse old canvases. This tends to make the surfaces more interesting as well. I don’t really throw any materials away and when I’m working on sculptures, I like to use a lot of found materials. I don’t have a heating or cooling system in my studio so this cuts out a ton of energy cost. There are really only a couple of months of extreme weather where I am so if I can power through those months, I’m good.

WHEN VENTURING BEYOND DIRECT REFERENCES TO ART HISTORICAL ICONS, WHAT DOES THAT PROCESS OF DEVELOPING SOMETHING ENTIRELY ORIGINAL LOOK LIKE FOR YOU?

I look back to things I knew as a kid. Things that gave me a certain feeling. I’ve always been drawn to illustration in children’s books and some of my earliest memories are of my mom reading to us before bed. There’s a sense of magic that you have when you’re young and it tends to get lost as you age. I try to hang onto that and it is a huge inspiration. There’s something special where that naivety meets adult life and I try to capture that feeling. 

LOOKING AHEAD, WHAT FEELS NEXT FOR YOU IN YOUR PRACTICE? ARE THERE NEW THEMES, MATERIALS, OR DIRECTIONS YOU’RE EXCITED TO EXPLORE AS YOUR WORK CONTINUES TO EVOLVE?

I’ve been looking at my old drawings lately. They’re mostly outdoor scenes with people interacting with other people or animals. I’d like to take those to canvas and work them out on a much larger scale. I’ll always have the skulls and still life paintings on the burners, but I’d like to go back and explore these ideas from 10 years ago.