It’s not my intention to shock, to offend, sensationalise, be political or whatever, only to make work that is as spiritually meaningful as I can make it- whatever the medium.

“Young, new, energetic, dynamic, cocky, cockney, rebellious (but not to rebellious, not Marxist or communist or anything old-fashioned like that), sexy, successful, scandalous (in just the way that attracts the media and draws the crowds) and above all profitable and British…”

I was living in this tower block; there was just me and him. He was an alcoholic, he would lie in bed, drink, get to sleep, wake up, get to sleep, didn’t know if it was day or night. But it was difficult to get him to stay still for more than say 20 minutes at a time so I thought that if I could take photographs of him that would act as source material for these paintings and then I could make more detailed paintings later on. So that’s how I first started taking photographs.

 I LOVE Richard Billingham