Growing up in South Sydney, my influence in all forms of art comes mainly from my family, my father and his father, both with an artistic background. My father who is a spray painter, sign writer and artist made it easy for me to love cars. There was always some tasty metal around his workshop to look at and I enjoyed seeing a body of metal being turned into something incredible, so it was only na
tural that I picked up a brush of my own and started painting on unused masking film. I just messed around and kept on practicing until my hobby began to be my passion. The 80s were so inspiring, the movies - action, horror, comedy, amine, graffiti - they all gave me inspiration and the desire to flip on what I saw and make it into a real vision. All of these opened up my mind and I started to get very creative and wild with my artwork. In my later years of high school I did work experience for the Daily Telegraph in Sydney, another artist there took me under his wing and I began helping the out on the weekends as well. In 1998 I started my apprenticeship as a sign writer, working for a company which did exhibitions – my job was to hand cut vinyl, styrene form and paint them in the colours needed. I started my business in 2000, calling it ‘AK Cartooning‘ working on fine art, illustration for tattoos and corporate designs as well working on custom paint designs for motor vehicles, bike and murals. As a qualified painter, airbrusher and artist I’ve opened my doors to the public using their imagination and ideas, stirring it up and adding my AK flavour to it. In 2006 I experienced the loss of a friend, she was close to me. During this time my work was very dark, although they had life in them as well. Skulls combined with rose petals - symbolising a story of freedom and darkness, the roses and petals symbolising freedom and the skulls being the darkness. This series I named the ‘Petal Dream Collection’.
2013 has bought a change in my direction. I’ve opened up old doors that have been closed for a while and have allowed the light back in. This has influenced a change in my art and design work, I am using colour to its full extent. I have allowed myself to see things differently but also keeping true to me and my style, using different mediums and techniques. Drop me a line if you are interested in my work, Emails.. Keep to0n AK
