Interview with Artist of the Week winner, Henry Jackson Newcomb.

1) When did it first dawn on you that you wanted to become an artist
or have you always known?

I was brought up in a very artistically rich environment, my mum and granny are both painters and my dad runs a 2nd hand bookshop aswell as painting a bit himself. I have always had an interest in the arts but growing up I tried to shun away from painting and 'fine art' and immersed myself in music and sound instead.

After my foundation year I went to Middlesex to study a BA in Sonic Arts but realised it was more suited for music tech and production, rather than the 'art + sound' work i was interested in. I finished the first year then moved to Norwich and started a Fine Art course here which i'm now in the final year of. It took me a while to get back into making work, but in the last 18 months I've become increasingly active and now am stuck with thinking about not much else except my practice.

2) Do you have any other passions other than art?

I have a solid passion for music, I DJ, produce and have run club nights in Norwich for the last two and a half years, this has become my job whilst at uni and imagine it will continue after. Its an amazing thing to be able to get paid for, although its taken my up until the end of 2010 to work out how to balance the late nights with uni.

I'm also part of the Hush House collective (www.hush-house.blogspot.com) which is mainly a music blog but has branched off to clothing and now we're launching a couple of club nights in Brighton and Barcelona, the blog has brought us many opportunities and we plan to take it as far as we can.

3) What did you get up to on the weekend?

Was working on my Research Report (dissertation) on Friday, then gave over saturday for a nice reunion of old housemates and people i met on foundation, went for a meal and darted round a fair few bars in town, sunday was recovery.

4) Have you made some New Years resolutions?

Read more, have a large list of books i'm slowly working through. Despite being brought up in a bookshop I havn't read that much for the last few years, maybe it was a book overload in my childhood.

Turn down DJ set offers, have been playing once or twice a week for the past 6 months and should probably cut down a bit and focus on uni work. i enjoy it too much though.

5) Do you have any excitable plans that you're looking forward to in 2011?

I'm currently working on a project called SAVORR which i plan to launch in March and then run as a monthly event from May onwards after I graduate. Savorr will be a one-night-only event made up of an open submission exhibition alongside a show of a selected artist or collectives work. 

There will also be music and it'll hopefully give em a chance to push music i'm interested in thats not suitable for playing out in Norwich, (the more chilled out experimental stuff).

Finally i can merge my event running in with my art practice and my producing of work with my interest in the curatorial role. I'm getting excited.

6) If you could be anywhere right now where would it be?

Probably back in the studio, they close the uni at 7:30 and I'm very much a night time worker and am always getting going from 5:00-7:30.. there isn't many other people around then so can understand why they close up..

but its nice and i can turn all the other lights off and pace around and put music on.. it works for me.

7) Who has influenced you the most when you are making art?

Roman Signer is my all time favourite artist, his work made me think that my broad and odd practice wasn't quite as odd as it was starting to seem. He's a creative genius and i strongly advise anyone to check him out.

Also a few close friends have given me alot of push and feedback over the last couple of years that i will be always grateful for.

Apart from that.. mainly coffee and the music i listen to when making art, it changes the way i think and work dramatically.

8) Any plans for after you graduate yet?

I pulled my main club night in November which i had been running for 2 years, was a big move but i needed to spend less time promoting and more time working.. so i'm looking forward to relaunching that as a monthly event as well as launching the Savorr monthly event.

I've also put my name down for a studio at Gildengate House in Norwich which is run by Outpost gallery. I had a studio there over the summer to let myself carry on working on a larger scale and for the time i was there it was amazing and gave me somewhere to look forward to working at when i graduate.

9) What are you listening to at the moment on your i-tunes?

too much...

James Blake, TV On The Radio, Mount Kimbie, Soom T, Deadboy, Koop, Velour, Lady Chann, Gorillaz, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Starkey, Dark Sky, Juilo Bashmore, Ramadanman, Buckshot LeFonque, Cat Power, Antony & The Johnsons, Portishead....... 

my taste varies..

10) Where will your next project be taking you?

I'm currently working on Eclipse 1, 2 & 3, which I'm hoping to exhibit before I graduate. Also trying to find a brand new bath that fits my criteria and doesn't empty my bank account, which i can use to make Plethora; a bath that is almost overflowing but continues to empty at the same amount it fills up at.

Thank you Henry, it's been very nice getting to know you a bit. 

Do keep us updated with all your successes and keep up the great work.

If you're ever in London during the first week of the month - pop down for First Wednesdays!

Take care and all the best

- team at Salon Contemporary