Coatesville artist making it big in town

Leon Taylor is an artist who knows all about apprenticeships.

The Coatesville-based artist, 35, says ‘focusing and really working at something’ is how he’s developed his body of work that he’ll be showing at the Auckland Fair.

On July 31, he’ll be running his second stall, with over 50 artworks including some ‘personal mishmashes’, prints, postcards and more.

Taylor says he initially got involved to put himself ‘in the deep end’ and to appeal to another type of audience.

‘‘I see how I’m a bit of a point of difference.

‘‘A lot of people tell me my stuff’s quite dark or gothic, or has a bit of a grotesque thing - even if it’s something quite funny, like I do ‘ Doughnut Vadar’ and I do quite a lot of pop culture things and play with them.’’

He likes the ‘raw, straight-up’ opportunity for feedback that the fair provides, and for travellers to pick up his art so it travels.

Taylor was not always an artist.

After leaving high school, he spent seven years working for MacDonald’s in Melbourne, and then in sales on his return to New Zealand.

Recovery from a knee operation made him rethink his life.

‘‘I saw myself at 50, not doing something I wanted.’’

At 29, he decided to enroll at Animation College, the longest course he could find: a four year, four-day-a-week, 8.30am-4pm gig, from February to December.

Animation seemed a natural starting point, as ‘everyone I kind of looked up to had come from [that background]’.

‘‘That’s how I knew I liked design and concept, basically the hardest job there is. I just wanted to be able to do that.’’

The artist also drew inspi- ration from album cover art, as he played in a metal band in his late 20s, along with cooking, a longtime hobby.

Among others, Taylor does design for a cider company, and promotional material for bands.

He also started a project called unseenmonsters.com with San Francisco-based photographer Scott Cooper.

Cooper takes pictures of cities and Taylor then draws a cartoon monster into the photo.

‘‘It gave me a good reason to study some other things, like lighting and skin textures.’’

Where does he see his work going in the next few years?

‘‘I just feel I’ve done my apprenticeship hours, I’m at the speed I’m happy with, so I’m just keen to be taking on more of everything I already do.’’