Interview by Ben Barsky, Artisanidea.com. June 2012

BB. I'll try not to focus too much on your seminal work with 2 Tone records as there seems to be no shortage of features and interviews looking at that point in your career! I can see the logical progression from that early work through to your current graphic work but am interested in where the painting comes into it. Have you always been painting or did that come after the graphic design work?

DS. I've always regarded myself, first and foremost, as a painter, I'd say I spend about 60% of my time painting and the rest is spent printmaking.

BB. You mention your father inspiring your love of drawing from an early age ‚ was he an artist himself? If so, was he a hobbyist or a working artist?

DS. He was a hobbyist but nevertheless a great draughtsman. He grew up in the post war years when children were expected to start earning a living as soon as they left school. So he never got the chance to go to college and train as an artist.

BB. You have described your work with 2 Tone as having an 'anti design aesthetic'. For those who aren't familiar with your work can you briefly describe what you meant by that.

DS. When I was working with Jerry Dammers and John Sims on the the 2 Tone material our approach was what you might call 'none design' meaning that we avoided any gratuitous design embellishments. This ruthless weeding-out process resulted in bold, simple, direct, black and white images and is probably the main reason that the 2 Tone style has such an enduring impact.

BB. Do you think you have carried an element of that in to your painting and if so how has it influenced them?

DS. Yes, particularly my latest work‚ stark, bold, simple. 'More is less' is my mantra!

BB. Your work has a haunting and almost unfinished feel to it. Do you find it difficult to judge when a piece is finished?

DS. Yes! well spotted. My wife often has to prise the brushes out of my hand as I strive for the level of simplicity I'm after. Trying to finish a work can feel a bit like chasing a cloud but I realise that ultimately... if it looks finished it is finished!

BB. If it's not too personal a question, why do you think you are drawn to the uneasy feelings in your work? Is it something that has interested you since childhood?

DS. This is a good question and one that I often ponder. I only ever utilise source material that instinctively attracts me and resonates strongly with me. Currently this material tends to deal with childhood and the work I'm producing is quite dark. I can't really say why this might be, I believe I had a happy childhood so perhaps I'm haunted by a sort of 'lost childhood'.

BB. Where were you raised and do you think that has influenced your work?

DS. I was raised on the west coast of Cumbria. Cumbria is the English Lake District and is a very beautiful place but the west coast is an industrial wasteland which, for me at least has a sort of bleak beauty. This is in my blood and maybe it's where the bleakness in my work comes from.

BB. I Imagine its a very different creative process making your prints and paintings. One must see you sat in front of a computer very precisely, pixel pushing‚ while I imagine painting is a much freer and more immediate process. How do the two compare? What do you take from them and is there one you prefer?

DS. I love painting, it's a very cathartic activity. Quite a few of my paintings have a corresponding limited edition print which is a 'hard edge' interpretation of the same subject. The painting is the primary work but I often develop a print version in parallel.

BB. Who are the painters currently inspiring you?

DS. Peter Doig, Wilhelm Sasnal, and Uwe Wittwer I love the haunting, cold, darkness of their work.

BB. Do you still work as a graphic designer or is it simply working on your own projects now?

DS. There is still a demand for my collaging skills it seems so I design album covers and related work for the music industry.

BB. Do you think your background in graphic design has influenced your approach to painting? Perhaps giving you more of an appreciation of the commercial context that art is viewed in, or a different approach to composition?

DS. Another good question! I made an important discovery about 15 years ago: that gallery art and commercial art (ie graphic design) are totally different animals. Art is a 24/7 vocation that involves searching one's soul and being brutally honest in what you produce as a result ('the artist witnesses the world then makes their account of it', Morrissey). Whereas a piece of graphic design is‚ by its very nature always going to be a piece of visual communication fulfilling a 'client's brief'.

Interview by Ben Barsky, Artisanidea.com. June 2012

© 2012 David Storey