An audio clip from our Community Correspondent David Bradley
It’s well known that art can help us to express our feelings. But for David, it’s more than that. When he looks at his paintings, he understands more about himself. He explains here.
Transcript:
I just think, how art has helped me. Life isn’t pefect, when I started to do some art, I was trying to do that, but I thought, my life isn’t like that. If anything, it’s been different, all boxed, from school days to when I was a child, to getting caught up in things, where you’re not supposed to be there, you’re in the wrong place and you’ll maybe get attacked, you know all these different things.
To me, art is a bit like that, it comes up against different things. It’s not perfect, the heads all… the ears are a bit… if you ever look, I know I’ve got something developmental going on in my head. When you look at my art, this is something I recognise myself, see this side, it’s always lower or there’s something going on. That’s how I knew from way back in my school days that there’s something I don’t get.
question: That’s your emotional side, eh?
I don’t know. I think it’s something to do with developing. I could see that right at the start. For me, that’s why I didn’t understand things in school, because my head sometimes goes this way. I know that’s what happens, I’ve looked at my own paintings and thought “how come I always do that?”. No matter what happens, it always has that. For me, it’s a lot to do with sex as well. You’re always told, don’t do that, sex is bad, you can’t do this, you’re not supposed to talk about that, don’t touch yourself there. That’s all to do with that as well. You’re always told, don’t do this and don’t do that, but that’s what you do naturally and you end up thinking it’s a bad thing. For me, it’s a bit like the religious thing, I was brought up to be a catholic and going to school and chapel and that and for me it didn’t make sense, it didn’t add up. When I do the art thing, that’s all there. It’s actually me helping myself.To do things.
Life isn’t perfect. A woman, or a man, or just things like that. I just do it naturally. You were saying Jackie (questioner) that you do your poetry, you do it from the heart
I can see your emotions. I see your emotions in that. Your left side is very emotional. It’s like you’re tilting, and you’re questioning. I can see that there too.
Uhuh,and people say “ you keep doing the same thing”. A guy said that to me once, the guy’s dead now, but in the art place, he said to me “why do you keep doing the same thing?” but it’s not the same thing. For me it’s helped me and that isn’t… people say art is about drawing things the exact same. “I can draw you, that makes me an artist”, but that;s a load of rubbish. You do things that come from your own and you just do it.
You’re drawing your feelings.
That’s my life, practically. I’m not a guy standing there all smiles. That’s what you get in the advertisements, people selling things. For me, that is life. When I had me wee exhibition, people from GAMH came, for me that was great, people just turning up. This is my wee bit of life. People liked it. So don’t ever be scared to do art and thing “oh, it’s not done right”. Just do it.
I really liked David’s audio clip. I totally “get” where he is coming from. That thing where growing up you feel you’re being moulded into a image of something that you don’t want to be and you “Want to Break Free”, the lyrics from Freddie Mercury’s lips say it all. Another lyric I like is from one of Madonna’s songs “Express Yourself” which funnily enough I was singing along to in The LUV Cafe in Govan this morning over coffee. I think David “expresses himself” brilliantly.
I really enjoyed listening to David talking about his work which he does in such an honest and unpretentious way – life isn’t perfect – David reflects this in his art – he’s a genius!