Blondey by Mike O’Meally
This Saturday a new collection of work from Blondey McCoy will be exhibiting at the Heni Gallery. It is titled ‘Fourth Fancy’ and is Blondey’s fourth solo show. Talking about his new work Blondey said “I want it to offer a furtive glimpse into what it is that makes a young man tick”. We thought we would find out a bit more about what makes Blondey tick in this short interview about his creative process…
Why should anyone reading this come to the show this Saturday?
To interact with people, drink Prosseccsy, feel something about new young artwork, and go home and maybe make their own? I don’t know, if you think it might be slightly more fun or stimulating than doing the same thing as you did last Saturday night then come.
What kind of time frame was the work made in?
I’ve been working on this one since May, so a few months, I don’t like to be pedantic but I also am a perfectionist, gutted. I wanted to do a November show as an anniversary to my THAMES AD show last year, because it’s at the same gallery, and luckily I was finished and ready to show it in time.
Do you create work methodically, manically or when the urge hits you?
Depends, whenever I feel like it. Sometimes in the middle of the night sometimes all day. But I like to set a date and work towards that. When it comes to shows I like to pick a name before making a lot of the work too, otherwise I can’t trust myself to stick to certain themes and it can appear disjointed and a bit wild, which is nice sometimes but too easy to do unintentionally.
We understand you have explored new techniques this time around, how was that?
Yeah it’s not all handmade, as it almost always has been before. There’s laser printed mirrors, which by their nature are quite interactive which is nice and ‘young and fun’, ha … printed stretch canvases, aluminium sealed prints, and I’ve also included a few lightboxes I showed earlier this year at the Riflemaker Gallery down the road for ‘THAMES TITS AND TEETH’. Those I really love and are in keeping with the theme of the show so I’m happy to bring them back out for a minute.
What is your favourite medium?
I’m still at a very experimental stage where I’m working out what I like. I’ve loved working on these mirrors, but the old faithful pritt sticked photomontage on paper or board still wins it for me. I want to work on a way bigger scale in the future.
What artists would you say have been most influential to you?
I love blatant ‘in your face’ artwork like that of Linder Sterling, Stezaker, Baldessari, and also artists like Hirst for his concepts, then you have your Bacon and Freud and Minton. All of who’s work I have always loved, but that may not show in my own. I’m just as influenced by fashion, films, music videos and photography, old porno etc too. I’m open to new things, but the things which interest me just tend to be old…
Do you have any recommendations of other stuff we should check out?
Brian Clarke has a show that just opened at Pace called Night Orchids which I love. The Abstract Expressionism exhibition at the RA round the corner is also a must. Also, not sure if still on (?) but saw David Bowies private collection at Sothebys the other day, and that was really good. Unsurprisingly, he had a lot of amazing work.
Was there a specific motivation to make this work, what does it represent?
Nothing more than a necessity to keep progressing and creating new work, it makes me calm to create it, and anxious but eventually happy to show it, and get everyone together for the night. That’s when the process is over for me, when it’s all hung and presented in a certain fashion and I can see everyone’s different reactions to it. All it represents or encourages is self expression as always.
Tell us about the charity ‘Together for mental wellbeing‘ that half of the profits will be donated to…
They’re good people, for whom I have tremendous respect, that have for a long time now been helping people with illnesses that are arguably the most neglected and ‘not wanted to be talked about’, but are rife in London and everywhere and only getting worse. As I said before, the show is a celebration of self expression, and discourages bottling things up. I know it’s seems obvious, but it needs to be said that everyone should be comfortable in their own skin and not afraid to talk about anything.
Thanks to Blondey for answering these questions. ‘Blondey McCoy’s Fourth Fancy” runs from the 19th-27th of November at the Heni Gallery, 6-10 Lexington Street, W1F 0LB, Soho, London. We will see you there!