Business
This story starts off as many creators and artists stories do. From a young age, there is skill, passion and promise. But, as in most cases, society pressure to get a “proper job” kicks in so direction changes slightly. Sounds similar right? It’s not to say to this “proper job” can’t be fulfilling in its own right, but, sometimes your original destined creative path has a way of happening in ways you couldn’t have even dreamed of. Meet the incredible Paul, who goes under the moniker My Dog Sighs. From an early age Paul discovered his talent and love for art, but, as with most of us put that aside as a hobby to follow a pretty sensible career, in his case, teaching. The story of his success all really started from his own morals of wanting to share his street art (that he was working on outside of work from his spare room) but not wanting to illegally paint on others peoples property (it’s not always a good look for teachers!). When leaving canvas paintings around the city became slightly expensive and really a form of littering, Paul had quite possibly the most genius idea. He realised that he reverse litter and turn discarded “trash” lying on the street into his canvas. Drink cans that would usually be ignored on the street were now to become pieces of art. Art that stood for much more that was on the can and what was to become a movement of free art (yup, we’re talking about the infamous, Free Art Fridays). Skip a few years and a feature by some rather tiny publications (super tiny like the BBC and Huffington Post) and Paul has now progressed into a hugely respected, internationally-known street artist. Working full-time in his studio in Southsea and putting on shows across the globe. Paul now works on “slightly” larger and more conventional canvases with a backlog of commissions for his infamous “eye” pieces (after listening to these podcasts we’re pretty certain you’ll see these in a new light). In this podcast, we chat about this journey and the clever steps that got Paul to where he is today. We also cover the much debated topic of knowing your worth as an artist, with Paul sharing his tips for any new artist who are starting out. You might tell from the episode that if was SO easy to be around Paul (apologies for all my agreeing noises - I just way into his story). So friendly and so down-to-earth yet, so much to learn from his hard-working approach that he has taken from his many years as a teacher. It’s very easy to see why Paul has gone so far. Please go check out the My Dog Sighs website to see more of his work if you haven’t come across it before. After this podcast I hope, like me, you see his work in a different light and really understand the story behind it. As ever, if you enjoy this episode please drop us a review, it really helps us bring more stories to you. Thanks for listening guys! Links: My Dog Sighs Website: http://mydogsighs.co.uk/ My Dog Sighs Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mydogsighs/ Paul's Reccomendations: Herakut: http://www.herakut.de The London Police: http://www.thelondonpolice.com/NewTLP/News.html