WHY DON’T YOU...?
The Insta-artist, famed for his quirky reimagination of Fendi’s logo for its Autumn/ Winter ’18 collection, reveals humorous life musings and everyday inspirations.
... SEEK OUT A QUIET ENCLAVE THAT FUELS YOUR WORK? I recently bought a house by the sea in Hastings, a beautiful small town on the southeast coast of England, just an hour and a half from London. The countryside here is protected and the natural beauty is just outstanding. Hastings is the original model for the town in the great semi-autobiographical novel The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists by Robert Tressell, which has inspired me to reconnect with art from a working class background similar to my own.
... APPRECIATE THE BEAUTY OF A POWERFUL FILM? The latest movie I’ve seen is Beast, a debut film by director Michael Pearce. It is a gripping, feverish tale of a young woman falling for the wrong man in the small island community of Jersey. The cinematography is beautiful and thrilling, giving the audience a sense of fear throughout. It’s very smart and very dark.
... INDULGE IN CHANCE CULTURAL FINDS? I was in Rome to see artist Nico Vascellari’s stunning installation ‘Revenge’ at MAXXI, and I also managed to catch an exhibition on Bruno Zevi, a great 20th-century Italian brutalist architect. His approach to creative engagement is refreshing where he said, “No to the architecture of repression, classicist baroque dialectal. Yes to the architecture of freedom, dangerous anti-idolatrist creative.”
... SPEAK THE SOUL OF A LEGEND THROUGH YOUR WORK? I was lucky to see the great jazz vocalist Jimmy Scott twice before he passed away in 2014. He overcame prejudice and his disability of Kallmann syndrome through his verbal flair and high-pitched voice. It was overwhelming to sit in front of him and listen to the vocals of a man who has invented his own brand of melodrama. I love listening to him while I draw.
... MAKE A STATEMENT ON CREATIVE PLATFORMS? As a nod to painter Francis Bacon, I want my images to give viewers instant access to a visceral sensation. My work aims to question the preconceived ideas of fashion and pop culture, a play on the nonverbal sign system. I have a range of Reilly brand T-shirts landing soon at Lane Crawford and a collaboration with Moncler. What a time to be alive! J @hey_reilly; www.heyreilly.com