Rory Walker

What themes run throughout your work? Attention to detail, magnification of the minutiae and characterisation/stereotypification of the every-day.

How do you hope your work will affect its audience? That the viewer will actually look at it and enjoy it. There’s no deliberate hidden meaning, but there’s usually some hidden deliberation.

What sounds influence your work? The inconsequential, seeming supurflous but highly necessary microscopic attention to detail that some musicians can create regardless of style or genre. To name drop would be to miss out many of equal importance.

What makes you decide to create your work? Money – sad as it may seem, at least for my commercial artwork. For me, I just do it because I enjoy it. However it’s not always a burning desire, sometimes I’ll do nothing for myself for a year or so, and do other things with my spare time. At least that’s the way it’s been in the past, I don’t know if that’d happen again, only time will tell. If it does, I think I’ll learn a new musical instrument, maybe the concertina or something.

Where do your talents lie? I guess in the line-work, controlling the line to go where I want it to, smoothly and efficiently with as little fuss as possible.

What successes have you had so far? In a commercial sense, I’ve had numerous books published, magazine editorial pieces commissioned, some album covers, and various other bits and pieces. In a personal sense, getting invited to write about my work for others to read about I’d consider quite successful, though everyone’s interpretation would be different. I like to settle back once I’ve finished a drawing and look at it and feel satisfied, however, if I look at the following picture and don’t feel as satisfied with it as I did with the previous one, then in my eyes I haven’t been successful, so I try and make every piece the best piece I’ve ever done. Though I’d imagine most artists would do that…

What was the first creative thing that you ever did? I don’t know, I was probably quite young at the time, and don’t have a very good memory.

Has anyone taught you how to use your talent better? I’ve been to college, but I’d consider the greatest teacher would be your eyes and looking at other people creating stuff. Nothing inspires me more than seeing someone doing something wonderful.

What makes you creative? Boringly, a need to pay the mortgage and eat. Interestingly… Erm, I don’t know, often I don’t feel creative as it’s a very insular and precise path I follow, so it’s not until I’ve finished what I’m doing that I can look back retrospectively and consider the time I’ve spent working as a creative process. Weird I know, but such is life.

How did you get started? From what I recall I’ve always drawn pictures, I’ve got a pretty good visual eye and can imagine things in 3d to a certain degree, meaning that I can see an object such as a cow or a house or something and rotate it around in my mind so that I can see the correct lines to draw, if that makes sense. I’ve got some drawing books that I did when I was about 3 or so with pictures I’ve drawn of dinosaurs and castles and stuff, so I reckon it progressed from there.

What inspires you? Nothing really, I just enjoy what I do so I do it. Occasionally I find something or some work by someone and I think “ooh that’s nice”, but really I just do it because I like it.

Who inspires you? The people around me (which is generally very few as I work on my own from home), but other artists in my vicinity would probably be the most accurate answer.

What do you do when you are suffering from creative block? Stop drawing, pack everything up, and suggest to myself that I’m never going to do it again, throw in the towel, give up and pursue a different walk in life. It may take a year or more but I’ll one day get the urge and I’ll unpack everything then get back to it, and it’ll be like I’ve never been away!

What are you trying to achieve? I don’t know. If I knew I’d aim towards it, but I like the constant metaphorical toss of a coin at every artistic crossroads to point me in whatever direction it chooses.

Do you collaborate? I would do, had I the time and came across someone whose artwork would work well with mine and all the rest of it, but thinking about it, I don’t know if the sum of the parts – in this instance – would be greater than the whole. I’d certainly try it though.

Ignoring money and all of life’s woes, what would you want to be? A freediver.

Accepting the need for money and all of life’s woes, what do you want to be? Surrounded by nice people.

What’s the most amazing thing you’ve ever seen / heard / experienced? Seen – Probably Capodoccia in the snow, or the Sahara desert, or the unexpected view in the centre of the Annapurna mountains that sneaks up on you when you’re least expecting it. Heard – The sounds of life in places other than home. Experienced – This is far too difficult to answer, but I do enjoy downhill mountain biking whilst listening to fast, loud, complicated music.

What do you consider to be the most important thing in life? Water. For two reasons, firstly for making tea with, and secondly for swimming in.

Who/what is your nemesis and why? My own ability to deny myself more biscuits.
                                                                         

Name://
Rory Walker

Age://
32

Profession://
Illustrator

Location://
, United Kingdom

Email Address://
rorywalkerillustrator@gmail.com

Web Link://
www.roryroryrory.com

Blog Link://
flippingwellace.blogspot.com/

Favourite Website://
news.bbc.co.uk

Type of work displayed on Magnus://
Illustrations

Work://

- Space Golf
- Organic Farming
- Other Rain
- Moon
- Bat Wing Jumpers