Hi, Billy the Artist Here,
As a teenager I wanted to work in comic books as an illustrator and then went to art college..... Here I was told to 'express myself'. What this meant was to do anything but 'express myself in the art that I enjoyed producing'. So within a week I was in the office being asked "Billy what don't you like about Modern Art" (the head of my art department may have used my full name David Bill) and I used my local Museum's Galleries current exhibition as a base to my reply and explained "that it was finger painting for adults!" The head of the art department laughed as it was my drawing tutors work! EEK! Billy the Artist drops a complete clanger......
Thus started a lot of problems. I paint representational work. That is how I 'express myself'. "Does Billy the Artist hate all contemporary art?" I hear you cry. No. But pickling a Shark and saying it it is 'Art' is a sham along with a lot of other smoke and mirrors that is offered as art today. Kids are squished through the art system today and told to express themselves and are left abandoned to try and earn a living in a heartless industry filled with lies and hype. At the end of the day food costs, bills need paying and people need taking care of and 'expressing yourself' doesn't do anything to pay the bills and leads a lot of people to depression.
I don't go with George Bernard Shaw either that 'He who can, does. He who cannot, teaches' as we all need good teachers and even the creator of the universe stepped down off his throne and was called a teacher. But the art world is filled with hypocrites. They expound 'Express Yourself' but their mortgage is paid (possibly). They have a decent salary to fall back on and do not need to try to live off their work. The vast majority of the modern art movement is a shameful, greed fuelled, hype driven nepotistic system that demands what we should believe is 'Art'. And tax often pays for it and not for vital hospital operations.....
After this I left college, ended up on a factory and worked for a year. I did meet at college the lady, Sharon who has become my wonderful wife who also introduced me to Jesus and his salvation, and then ended up back at college, studied for my degree in multi disciplinary design at Staffordshire University. Since then my family has grown with three children (Peter, Hannah and John who are the children in the Stepping Stones paintings) and I have had a roller coaster ride in the art world with two London Shows, work in private and corporate collections including Aston Martin, Britannia Building Society and the BBC among others. I have been down salt mines and thrown out of a plane for a painting (with a parachute). This all sounds 'Great and Grand' but is like most people a life of struggle and pain. Of great highs and incredible lows. It has not been an easy ride and I wouldn't want to misguide you. I have packed and made boxes, done a stint as a bus driver and written off thousands of pounds after not being being paid for work completed. Real life is real and you can hear more about my life in art in an hour audio that you could download and listen to via this link that will give you me telling you about my life to a group of Art enthusiasts at Ross on Wye Baptist Church.
You can view all my work via Billy's portfolios page and others from the homepage which will give you some idea of my artistic travels. And you can now purchase my prints for yourself or for a unique gift for a family member or friend from Billy's online store.
Below are a links to some MP3 talks that I have done. They are free to download and share. Most are from my work as Pastor of a Church in Stoke on Trent, Jesus Church Stoke, and there is the audio book chapters for 'Three String Blues' by Pete Townsend. Enjoy.
The Cost of Piracy
20 min talk, delivered in September 2007 at a Y Friday gig at the Queen's Theatre, Burslem, Stoke on Trent.
The Church Billy Pastors. Audio Feeds avaialble from the main church site.
Three String Blues - Pete Townsend
I have read for Pete chapters from his book available from his website.
HOME to view more of Billy the Artist's work www.billyart.co.uk
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