Jeremy Lane: An Exclusive Interview with A.I.M.O.

StartFragmentSocial Media can be a very helpful tool when finding new artists to fall for. Such was the case with Jeremy Lane.

When did you first start using pen as your medium?

The first piece I did in pen was a self portrait diptych for my final year of high school assessment. It was done in biro and at the time I thought it was massive, I kept thinking "how am I ever going to get this done?!" Compared to my pieces now, they're tiny (ha,ha, ha!). I think they were A1 or A2. Then I stopped drawing until around the start of 2016, which is when I picked up the pens again.

Are you classically trained in all mediums and did you go to art school?

I studied art in high school, but never pursued it further into college or anything. I've been drawing since I was pretty young, and have been on and off all of the time. Studying at school made it feel like another "subject" alongside English and Math, etc. It made me not want to do it in my spare time. If I thought of art, I would assimilate it with due dates and assessments, which I didn't find motivating. I expect that would happen if I took it to college. I would start to hate it all. So as long as I keep productive and aware of what and how I am doing things, I feel like I can continue to learn and get better. I can't use any other mediums other than pens either, I can't wrap my head around paints at all. Getting paint all over my clothes back when I was young has scarred me for life I think, that stuff gets everywhere. I like being able to put the lid on my pen and that's it. Easy to pack away and easy to get started (ha, ha, ha). What is your favorite subject matter and why?

Portraits are my favourite subject. I also value taking my own reference photos of people I know. I was drawing shoes for a while, but they got old quick. Even taking photos for shoes and still life, nothing happens. When I'm taking photos of people, there's so much going on. The conversations that occur, the laughs, the pressure of working with people to get a good shot, it's a whole event that happens which I am reminded of when drawing and looking at the finished piece. For everyone else, it's just a drawing of someone they don't know, but for myself and the subject, it's a snapshot in time that happened. I saw what I am drawing with my own eyes and can remember how we got that shot. I can remember what we were talking about and what ideas we had. Nothing's really too planned, so it's rewarding seeing everything come together from a situation with myself, a camera and friends.

If you could collaborate with any artist, who would it be with and why?

I'm not too sure. Definitely someone with a different style and probably a different medium. I like the thought of doing a background, but it's such a task with these fine liners. Maybe someone who can do that for me in a collaboration! Perhaps some aerosoles or airbrush, I like the thought of paint being applied with particles and not brushes.

What is next for you?

Going to keep drawing and getting some works done for an exhibition. I want to keep getting better technique wise, I still have a lot to learn. I'll keep experimenting with different shots and angles for these portraits and see what happens!