Ryan Davies

I was born and raised in London, England, but have spent the last decade living in Asia - and China in particular - after following a childhood fascination with the arts and culture of the region.

I have drawn and painted since an early age and have always held a deep, instinctive resonance with color and form, with one of my earliest memories being an impression that the bold colours and shapes of childhood stickers at the end of my cot had their own dimensions and characters that could be literally entered in to and experienced as other worlds.

I've been told that this memory when I was under three years of age (one of several) can't be so, as after three years of age the brain restructures itself and layers over all previous memories, essentially wiping them. As a dyslexic however, my brain is apparently mapped differently, which suits me just fine.

My thought process has always worked in patterns, angles and colours, viewing them as a more direct form of communication when compared to the written word or spoken language.

During my teenage period and early twenties, I drew heavily from the Chinese influences of line and form along with the bold design of Japanese wood block prints. Over a period of many years my work...

I've studied fine art at college, as well as graphic design, photography and 16mm film making at other times in my life. However, I hold the view that everything is one thing and that the unfolding of ones character due to a person's life experiences affects the skills and abilities they possesses in a far greater way than formal education can (in view of creativity).

Therefore – in my mind - my true training has been the often times painful burning away of the extraneous parts of my inner-self that has then resulted in my current style and focus.

In other words, you could say I believe each person's life is a work of art, regardless of if they are aware of it or not, because the merging influences of a person's personality, experiences and feelings, are absolutely unique, especially when outwardly expressed as art.