Prison 1996-2003

AT SOME POINT IN MY CHILDHOOD, I DON'T KNOW WHEN, I CLIMBED ONTO THE CRIMINAL LADDER AND BEGAN TO CLIMB. IT LED A FUN, EXCITING, DANGEROUS, AND SOMETIMES VIOLENT, LIFE. JUST AFTER MY 26th BIRHDAY, I WAS ARRESTED. THE PEOPLE I WAS WORKING WITH SUBSTITUTED TWO HOLDALLS I WAS MEANT TO TRANSPORT, WITH TWO CONTAINING £4.5 MILLION OF CLASS 'A' DRUGS. CULMINATING INTO A 14 YEAR PRISON SENTENCE. EARLY ON, A CELL-MATE SHOWED ME HOW TO DECORATE ENVELOPES WITH WATERCOLOURS. 18 MONTH LATER, IN A HIGH SECURITY PRISON, I STARTED AN ART COURSE, FELL IN LOVE WITH IT, AND DECIDED TO WORK TOWARDS A DEGREE. I WAS URGED ON BY MANY OF BRITAINS TOP ARTISTS, WHO CORRESPONDED WITH ME (GARY HUME, TRACEY EMIN, RAY RICHARDSON, PATRICK HUGHES, SARAH LUCAS, PETER DOI