Name: Becky Newell
Nickname: Bexter, Bex, Becky or MUUUUUM!
Occupation:
- Artist
- Art teacher
- Director of Origin Arts Ltd
Scariest Moment:
I once had to sing a solo to an audience - I was confident on stage at the time but singing, although I was trained, was not my first love. I was singing a beautiful song from 'Yentle' and the first verse went repeatedly “Papa can you hear me, Papa can you... La, la?”. I got up in front of the audience and suddenly felt this awful weight come over me - my heart started beating and cheeks suddenly burning. The pianist, a different one to the one I had rehearsed with, began. I started off “Papa..” And had absolutely no clue what came next. It was awful! I was forced to make the entire song up on spot in front of the audience. I can't tell you how many questions I asked poor ‘Papa’ by the end of my version! (Look up the song it's actually very lovely.) I thought I had vaguely got away with it when I got a round of applause and acknowledged with scorching red cheeks. However, a week later a bumped into the pianist when I was on the tube and he said “nice version of the Yentle song - I think you got away with it!” Cringe!
Biggest Fear:
Do you mean like a spider or on a bigger scale? I've learnt to get over my spider fear since being sort of trapped in a cowshed in the Dominican Republic with a roof full of tarantulas. Also, when you’re a mum you quickly have to become efficient with a glass and a piece of paper - I'm pretty stealthy with that now! Rather proud!
I became very ill in 2005 and it changed me entirely. I had possibly the worst migraine I had ever had and the day after my left side became almost paralysed, my speech slurred. I knew the words I wanted to say but couldn't say them! I couldn't remember basic things. It got a great deal worse, effecting my right side. I could only walk very short distances before it very slowly got better. However, I wasn't afraid. I have what they discovered to be Chronic Hemilplegic Migraine. It doesn’t sound very dramatic, I always think it should be called something far more impressive so that people realise the devastation it actually has on people's lives. For me, although it could have been devastating, it was more of a fork in the road between fear and peace. I walked down the right path, I think, and so fear isn't really part of my life.
Having said all of that, I absolutely refuse to ever do a bungee jump!
Favourite Artist:
Well, it can’t be favourite artist, it has to be favourite artists. And that has to be inspiring artists from all walks of life. Such as God, He's pretty creative. Spirituality, as in the meditative sort not the judgemental sort, plays a massive part in my life. Love is at the heart of things for me. I think that's why I am drawn to the energy of the sea, you can actually see the perfection of the process of energy in a wave. I’ve gone off on a tangent - that’s not to do with favourite artists, is it? But I do think God is an artist!
Then there is Kurt Jackson. When I'm at the end of a piece of work, I look at his work and then think, am I actually finished? The answer is usually no. Jackson manages to bring freedom and lightness together in his work. He manages to make everything look beautiful - even road works! I could talk for hours about how inspiring his artwork is and the effect his has on my own work. As well as, how much I love just being absorbed into the images he creates. I will consider myself truly successful when I can buy a tiny Kurt Jackson piece for my wall.
Frida Kahlo - I love that woman. I just love her. Her passion and commitment, her unflinching honesty. I think that's what art is about, it's not about if you can draw well or paint ‘nicely’, a great many people can do that. You have to be prepared to examine your entire self. Live and grapple with question marks. Enjoy the philosophy of life. Be willing to be passionate on a canvas and be generous enough to share that beauty.
Van Gogh, I think I empathised with his madness! With his struggle with the church and his differing relationship with a creative God. I found his life story interesting and therefore enjoy his work.
Blimey, there are so many artists. Artists I teach everyday, people that I meet who inspire me in my painting one way or another. Painting, for me, is often about the thinking, or sometimes about actively not thinking! Lifestyle and stories are often as important and inspiring to me as the work
However, if you were to ask me what I would hang on my wall? Kurt Jackson, every time.
I smoke and I shouldn’t. I'm constantly trying not to. I think love is at the heart of all things and laughter is the best medicine for anything. I adore movies, books and going to the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC). The latter probably being the only thing I'm really narrow minded about! I fell absolutely in love with the RSC when I was lucky enough to go there for the first time when I was 16. I was spellbound by Anthony Sher and the magic of pictures coming alive. It was enthralling to me, and still is. Living in the midlands means we are lucky enough to be able to take advantage of treating ourselves to the odd trip to The Swan Theatre. I could go on for hours about Shakespeare. I love Shakespeare by the way. I saw Mark Rylance play Romeo and Hamlet when I was 18, it was incredible! He is a truly inspiring, creative person. He’s someone who makes me pick up my brushes and paint! I'm a big fan of his artistic integrity.
When I was growing up I wanted a career in Zoology, then for a long time I wanted to work in the special effects industry. It was a different age then and I was constantly told as a woman I wouldn't be strong enough to hold the cameras! Anyway, as a result I was directed to do backstage stuff so that I could get on courses at the BBC etc. for effects. Going to the RSC was a life changer; I changed direction to drama. My art teacher was livid. I took acting as a serious career path for many years however, I am now glad that I didn’t continue along that path, although I have to say it was wonderful fun whilst I did it. I never see it as separate to my painting but rather as an extension. I worked with some really talented, creatively intelligent, thought provoking and, yes, down right mad people and they profoundly shaped who I have become.
I am an I.N.F.J (introvert, intuitive, feeling, judging), so introverted though no one ever believes me. I either do things with passion or not at all. For example, if I'm reading a book you won't get a word out of me; dinner will be late until the book is finished! Dinner gets burnt regularly in favour of a painting or project I'm doing elsewhere. I am immovable once I believe something strongly and feel injustice has been done. I am happy to join the protest and love to debate it with friends. My friends are my family. Rarely are my true friends left behind. I am enormously blessed to have a wonderful family of close, varied, challenging and colourful friends that support me, keep me in check and laugh a great deal with me.
How did you get into art?:
That’s like asking how did you learn to breathe! I just did. I found a water colour my dad had done when I was very small and asked my mum if I could copy it. To be honest, I just drew everything and painted everything all the time.
I had a strict watercolour background; my dad was a very good technical watercolourist and was pretty insistent I stay within the technicalities. As I got older I started taking photos. I would build sets and make models to photograph to create unusual images. I had a wonderful and long suffering friend Claire Frost who would let me make her hands up to make them look like they where zombies. I would half bury them and photograph them. I thought it was cool and deeply edgy. I was also very fortunate to have a great teacher at school who never gave out an A (although, I finally got one out of him!). He was extremely encouraging. Before that though, I had had a primary school teacher who had really valued creativity full stop and put immense value on those of us in class that where creative beings as well as those who coloured neatly. We did some great things with him; improvisation, art competitions and we even had a colouring wall for when you had finished your work. He believed in self expression and that was something that really stayed with me.
My whole pathway of creativity has been about telling the story of whatever question mark i am looking at. I have explored many mediums; photograph, theatre, writing and art - essentially painting is the glue that is at the core of all these things. It wasn't until I was a little more confident in my own skin that I could really start to develop my own style and find my own creative voice.
I started to play around with my watercolours, abandoning all techniques, sticking what I wanted on a canvas to make my point. At about the same time Paul took me to an exhibition and it turned out to be the first Kurt Jackson exhibition I was to go to. It was breathtaking and I saw that he was already doing what I had independently started experimenting with. It was so exciting to see the lightness of touch and the way he had used such immediacy letting the moment speak for itself. When I returned home I began again with renewed confidence. I haven’t really looked back since.
My work has been published in books, in magazines and on C.D. covers! I've exhibited a lot in the past, although don't tend to so much now because of my illness. I have exhibited in Birmingham, Cornwall and Worcester. It’s been amazing to see how my work has been received. My pathway through creativity makes sense to me and I’m grateful that I have been so fortunate to have had so many opportunities to try out so many expressions. I think it really adds to the way I approach my work.
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