Spray Paint

How spray paint came into my life!

In the summer of 2017, I went to video a Brighton based graffiti artist called Aroe, he was asked by a local business to create a masterpiece on a wall using spray paint. After I had completed my videoing tasks and he had finished his work, we went back to his studio to drop off all his materials. I was fascinated by the results he could achieve with a spray can and asked him if I could use some of his leftover spray paint to trying and jazz up my sunglasses. Aroe advised me to pop the lenses from the frames as it would be quicker than masking them off with tape to stop the paint from getting all over them. He handed me a practice canvas so I could get used to the pressure that comes out of the can. I know I didn’t want to flood my sunglasses with lots of drips and runs or worse, miss the sunglasses completely and get paint all over his studio furniture!

As I practised controlling the pressure from the nozzle I became more confident in a very short time and I was ready to transform my first pair of sunglasses into a piece of original and usable art. I couldn’t believe how quickly the sunglasses dried and within minutes AROE took them off me and started to tag my name in a graffiti style all over them. I still have these special sunglasses tucked away in my draw at home, one as a memory of a great day out and to remind me of the start of my art career.

When I showed my friends my new original sunglasses, many of them asked if I could make them a pair, I was also getting attention from people when I wore them out and about! I decided to buy 50 pairs of £2 fashion sunglasses from PRIMARK in Brighton and turn each one into individual designs. After posting a few pictures on Instagram I was selling them all over the world! It gave me a great boost of confidence, especially as this was my first real attempt at art!

Here are some of my earlier sunglasses.

Using spray paint for art has so many advantages.

During that summer and after practising with the affordable £2 fashion style sunglasses from Primark, I was being asked if I could do better quality sunglasses like RayBans. I started researching the possibilities of using better quality sunglasses but although the graffiti paint almost sticks to anything, the paint from a can is totally different in consistency to the paint used for a commercially made pair of sunglasses. I knew it wouldn’t have the same wear and tear and felt if someone was spending hundreds would be left feeling disappointed. It was at this point I decided to try something new with my new art skills.

I started turning plain coat hangers into unique and colourful ones. As I gained total control over the spray can, I started being asked if I could turn my designs into spray paintings. Within my first years, I had over 20 painting on the walls of several Luxury Airbnb’s.

Why do I like spray paint?

I like spray paint because it bonds to most surfaces very easily and it covers well. You can also layer another colour over the top within minutes whereas with some paint mediums you have to wait over 24 hours for it to dry. There are also hundreds of different colours variations to choose from which is great for creating bright art like mine

The downside of painting with a spray can is the smell and chemicals used that make it spray, if inhaled can be very dangerous to your health. I always wear a quality spray mask and paint in a well-ventilated area with plenty of fresh air.

Although spray paint covers almost anything very easily it is not as flexible on a canvas as many other traditional paints such as oil-based paint. In time, if the canvas flexes, it can crack the paint. I love the look of this due to my style of art being so contemporary but if you don’t want cracks, you need to paint on material that is solid like treated plywood. I tend to use this wood myself these days and always treat the wood surface with a gesso material before painting, gesso helps the paint bond to the wood and in time the paint should not peel off from the wood as it is stuck to the gesso as a barrier.

So if you want to try painting with graffiti type paint, my advice is to get a decent spray mask, practice controlling the paint pressure before painting on the surface you want to paint, and most importantly, have fun. In time, you could be the next international spray paint artist.