There was immense artistic talent at The Other Art Fair Bristol this July,
yet there were six stand-out artists for me,
what a privilege to exhibit with these incredible individuals…

James Kriszyk
JAKBOX
Shefford Smith
Satoshi Dáte
Samuel Ageborn
John Clare

Work In Progress (Shaman), 2016, James Kriszyk

When Spider Kisses Fly, James Kriszyk

Pavement no.4, 2015, JAKBOX

by Shefford Smith

Christopher James Shefford Smith @ The Other Art Fair Bristol 2016

KoRo (series), Satoshi Dáte

Satoshi Dáte @ The Other Art Fair Bristol 2016

Samuel Ageborn Hencher @ The Other Art Fair Bristol 2016

by John Clare

There are many photographers, but few artists that use the medium of photography – James Kriszyk is one of those artists, and he understands magic…better yet, he understands how to capture magic with his lens – James is a kind and fiercely passionate individual. Due to time pressure I didn’t manage to meet Simon Williams, the man behind JAKBOX, however, I spent a good while appreciating his work one morning before everyone else rolled in. There is no comprise with this work, unabashedly urban (at a time when the word urban feels cliché), the work is strong… in the strongest meaning of the word, and thats what I love about it. ‘A draughtsman’ is how Christopher James Shefford Smith thinks of himself – Christopher’s work springs from a sophisticated visual aesthetic – his are elegant concepts, beautifully executed, to coalesce into something sublime. Christopher is a humble, under-appreciated talent.  When it comes to the work of Satoshi Dáte, I’m biased, given my love of the Japanese aesthetic, and Satoshi succeeds with his own brand of existential purity. Like Shefford Smith, this is a highly sophisticated aesthetic that would slot straight in with the most contemporary of galleries. Samuel Ageborn Hencher was stationed to the right of my stand, so I got the opportunity to witness the genuine appreciation of his work from visitors to the fair (myself included), and quite right, because I’m a big fan of Sam’s work. Sam is a Yorkshire-man, Ilkley to be exact, the grandson of a painter and now living in Berlin – why do I mention all this? Sam has a photographic mind, he mainly paints from memory after his initial sketch, and captures the feeling of ‘the walk home from school’ in a typical Yorkshire village. Now, I live in Yorkshire, and understand perfectly well just how magical this best-kept-secret-of-a-county really is – Sam captures the emotion of it so beautifully that its poetic. This is an unusual talent, I visit galleries whenever I can, and have seen more paintings thus far than I can shake a stick at, and yet how few representational paintings truly move me. This is Sam’s USP, he somehow imbues his work with the feeling of the place, and not only the place, but the essence of that personal momentary experience – this is so rare, only the master painters understood how to do this, yet Sam is a truly intuitive painter, especially when he selects a location from the heart, rather than the mind. If you’re looking to invest in art, I’d say Samuel Ageborn Hencher is a banker, and a wonderful guy at that. Last, but definitely not least, John Clare… what to say about John, other than, like Samuel Ageborn Hencher, he is the real deal when it comes to painting. This is a seasoned painter who understands his context very well, yet is well rooted in that awesome inner child of his, that provides him with a goldmine intuitive style to fall in love with – I could gaze upon his paintings all day long, something soft comes over me, I kind of melt, like looking at a beautiful warm view from the holiday hacienda of a close friend. If I could, I would buy a villa with aquamarine shutters and a veranda, and fill it with John Clare paintings… and that people, is my idea of heaven on earth.

Thanks to all above-mentioned artists for allowing me to feature your work.