Face to Face with... Greg Pidcock

Greg Pidcock has always been obsessed with bright colours. As a young child he was electrocuted by a bright neon sign at a shopping mall in Bangkok when he touched its LEDs having been fascinated and drawn in by the lights. Fast forward to today and the emerging DJ signed to successful record label Hot Creations boasts a healthy portfolio of luminous pieces that complement and work alongside his music.

With a monthly residency in his current city Montreal - for which he provides the artistic decoration - involvement in a campaign for an international shoe brand and a keen ambition to develop his art with moving images for music promos, Pidcock is an interesting one to watch.

Having been in London to play the city’s Cuckoo Club last week, he took time out between gig and gallery visits to tell us about his artistic style, meanings within his work and how he was once commissioned to paint in the style of late artist and social activist Keith Haring.

You’ve been known to decorate the DJ booth for your sets. How did you get into doing that?

This all started with my DJ residency at Velvet in Montreal. They offered me a monthly spot and I proposed I decorate to make it something special. They were super down for it and since then it has become the most successful monthly event at the club. In the future I'd love to be able to do this type of stuff in other cities.

Your own unique skull design has become synonymous with your work. Tell us about how you conceived it and what it means.

The skull in general is what unifies us all as human beings and having my own skull is my way of expressing my understanding of that. The shape of the skull is also significant as it's in the shape of a keyhole, which is an idea of the key as an understanding of the unity of the human race inside our heads; our consciousness. Some people have told me they think it looks like a cute octopus which always makes me smile.

How would you describe your artistic style and what does it mean to you?

Colourful, bold and playful. Art makes me happy and I like to share that happiness so I focus on things that make me smile. Making work is much like meditation for me and I have one rule when I'm doing art: have fun or put it down for a while. When I'm creating a piece it's all about going to that happy place and forgetting about the rest of the world. If I get to a point where I'm not enjoying myself or the work I'm creating I take a big step back, go for a walk or go to see a friend.

At what point did you realise your music and art could work together?

I've always been involved with both art and music but once I started decorating themed parties I realised that I could really start bringing together my own artwork and music. Jamie Jones and Lee Foss of Hot Creations were also influential in encouraging me to pursue the both, as it was my art that caught their eye before they had even heard my music.

And do you use your art to market your music? Tell us about that aspect.

I guess 'market' is a weird word to think about as an artist but I think the way my art integrates into my social media it gives the people who are already interested in my music something else to grab on to, so to speak. Also, it can be quite difficult to make money selling music these days so it gives me something else to sell. Plenty of times when I've barely had enough cash for rent I would be able to sell a painting or two and make it to the next month.

Tell us about your ‘Man’ piece – where did the idea come from, what does it mean?

The man piece (right) was commissioned by Underground Shoes UK. It’s on display in their flagship store in London and will travel to their other flagships in Hong Kong and Moscow. They had been following my work for some time and when they launched their Punk Army campaign they asked me to be a part of it.

And what about the giant banner with the yellow figure? Tell us about that piece…

That is my personal tribute to Keith Haring which happened in Detroit last year during the Circoloco party. The event was a tribute to Arthur Russell; they [the organisers] had ordered a bunch of Keith Haring wallpapers which didn't come in.

Once word got around I could paint the organisers asked me if I could paint in Keith Haring's style to make some giant wallpaper on the morning of the event. I agreed and spent the whole day painting under the sun in the parking lot of the club. It was still wet when we put it up! A great man once told me you can't truly understand your favourite artist until you really get into their shoes and this exercise is exactly what I needed to truly understand Keith's spirit.

Would you ever consider bringing your art to life with moving images/on film? Maybe with imagery for club nights…

Oh definitely. I've been working with Anothersidewalk.tv and Milk Studios NYC on a couple of music videos for my upcoming music. So far I've been amazed by the results and their work has inspired me to get deeper into video.

Where were you when inspiration last struck?

Inspiration is all around me but the day after I played Cuckoo we went to see the Paul Klee exhibit at the Tate Modern. The depth of his work really spoke to me and was giving me all kinds of ideas about my own art. I've always been a huge fan of the art that came out in Europe between the two World Wars and Klee really represents that era well.

What’s the best advertising campaign or commercial you’ve seen recently and why?

I don't watch television but always keep my eyes out for colourful print ads. The latest illustrations by Neal Adams for the Day & Night Nurse campaign (below) are incredible. My girlfriend and I stopped and took a long look on the Tube the other day and it really stuck in our heads. The Tube ads for the Bethnal Green Toy museum at Bethnal Green Tube station are also really fun.

Tell us one thing about yourself that most people wouldn’t know…

I speak fluent Spanish and sometimes it really confuses people as they aren't expecting it at all.

What advice would you give to up and coming artists hoping to be successful in the creative industries?

Work hard and work smart! Be the type of person you want to meet and don't be afraid to follow your gut.

Listen to Greg Pidcock's latest mix here and for more artistic inspiration follow his Instagram and Facebook accounts.