Charlie Haydn-Taylor is an up-and-coming talent who is blazing the trail as a young Jersey artist. Chris Clifford of Private and Public Gallery comments, “Charlie Haydn Taylor’s paintings are technically superlative, brilliantly researched and deceptively innocent with their bright pop art colours and iconic lavish interiors. They reveal a certain psychological intensity and an existential angst which in many ways is reminiscent of the great American painter Edward Hopper.” It seems his acclaim isn’t just local, with international exhibitions planned for July in Beijing and Seoul in March 2024. We caught up with him before he jets off to Asia to chat about life as a future star of contemporary art.
Did you always know you wanted to be an artist?
I think so, even if not consciously. It’s probably easier to say that I always knew I wanted to be creative. From a young age I was always mad about going around art galleries, dragging my family to different museums on holiday. Initially, I went down the route of Graphic Design, which I think has had an effect on the style of my work. I did after a while find I wanted to create things that were solely my own idea and reflected my perspective on life.
Can you explain your art to those unfamiliar with it?
My work tends to be described as Pop Art, a genre created in the late 1950’s by artists such as Richard Hamilton, David Hockney and Peter Blake. It was later made into one of the most popular forms of art by Andy Warhol. My work explores the idea of isolation and loneliness within our modern world. When I moved from Jersey to London, I became interested in the theory that the more people inhabiting a place, the lonelier one could feel. An interesting paradox. My art focuses on architectural spaces as my interest lies in how we perceive the outside world from within and vice versa.
Who would you say has been the biggest inspiration in your art journey so far?
I think it would be hard to narrow that down to one person as so many people have contributed to where I am now. People I know personally and people I don’t. The first person to have a major impact on me was an art teacher, James Wright, who himself is a brilliant artist. He moulded my general creativeness into something that had a focus, channeling my interests into a physical medium. After that, the next big impact came from Chris Clifford, who many
will know as the owner of Private and Public Gallery in Jersey. He was the first art dealer to take a chance on me and put my work in an exhibition. I wouldn’t be at the level I’m at now if it wasn’t for him.
As for people I have admired from afar, again, the Pop Artists of the 60’s, Tom Wesslemann, Patrick Caulfield, Richard Hamilton have all had a huge impact on the way I create. The other major name would be Edward Hopper as we share similar sensibilities in the way we
perceive the struggles of life. He was the master of creating work that emphasised isolation, although I believe he refuted that he did this intentionally.
What artwork do you own?
I have so far built up a small print collection, nothing vast and I’m hoping to start collecting paintings in the near future. Currently I own pieces by Pure Evil, Dan Baldwin, Charlotte Rose and James Talon to name a few.
Your debut international solo show is coming up, can you tell us about it?
So this will be my first solo exhibition in Asia after I took on representation in February this year. I will be showing 20 unseen paintings in the gallery’s new space in Beijing. All the works will
touch upon ideas portraying feelings of isolation, contemplation and silence. The gallery I will be showing in is called Streams Gallery. For those not able to see it in person, you can access the show on my Instagram @charliehtart or via the galleries website www.streamsgallery.com
How are you feeling about it?
I’m excited! I feel very privileged to be showing to a whole new audience in a different continent. It’s been a lot of work as I was given about 4 months to create all the new work, but I’m happy
spending all my time in the studio making.
Any plans to do any shows more locally?
Having just helped in the Spring show ‘Mixtape’ at Private and Public, I don’t have any exhibitions planned currently in Jersey. However, that’s not to say I don’t have other local projects I’m working on behind the scenes. I’ll have to keep them secret for the moment but there’s some exciting things going on.
Where can people view your work and how can people buy it?
You can see all my work on my website www.charliehaydntaylor.com and you can get in touch with me about purchasing work directly or through Private and Public Gallery. Also if you’d like to sign up to my mailing list, you can go to my website www.charliehaydntaylor.com and you’ll receive emails about any exhibitions, new releases and more.
Finally, if you weren’t an artist, what would you be?
An art collector.
‘No Man is an Island’, by Charlie Haydn-Taylor is showing at Streams Gallery, Beijing in July and in Seoul in March 2024
