p 50 | BIGISSUE.COM 09-15 MARCH 2020
I’ve been selling The Big Issue for over eight years
now, but in that time I’ve developed an interest in
art. I had a placement in the Northern Trust bank
in Canary Wharf in 2016, and currently have one at
data science company Dunnhumby near my pitch
one day a week. I had an exhibition there last year
and I’ve got another one coming up shortly at River
Studios in North London, near to where I live.
To start with I just came up with an idea about
shapes and colours and then I thought, well, do it on
A4. So I got coloured art cards, I’m printing all these
shapes – diamonds, squares, circles and what have
you – and for some reason I tended to get a good
match with the colours. People seem to like my
combinations, more so than my shapes.
I’ve been thinking about my past, and what
gave me the idea – I used to work in a garage in
Derby, where I’m from. I used to mix the paint for
car spray, using different shades of colours. Maybe
part of it came from there. Shapes-wise, I remember
my grandmother having a tea mat that was just
diamonds, it was an elaborate pattern. When
people ask me I usually say it suddenly came to me
but I think I got it from there.
I’m selling the odd thing now. I’ve got this guy
called Gavin, he does my prints. He’s got his own
business, he’s a designer as well. He’ll scan my
originals and then he’ll make them up. I display
some of them on my pitch, some of my customers
will pick one and then we’ll arrange a meet and
do the sale. I sold an original a couple of years
ago for £200. We did the sale in Costa! That was
through The Big Issue. A woman rang in, a price was
discussed and before I knew it I’d got a phone call,
we met up and we did the deal.
I did a piece that someone said looked like a
Matisse – at that point I didn’t even know that he didpaper cut-outs. I’d already done a Matisse lookalike
before I found out about this! I’m sort of connected
with him. To tell you the truth, I think the inspiration
just comes from me. I have found out that my work
is similar to many other artists, but not the same. I
have my own individual style.
Most of the time I’m selling The Big Issue, and
I have to commute from North to West London. I
don’t have a lot of time to do my art.
I’m grateful for the placement I have at the
moment. I’ve got my own little table and chair, I’ve
got my own space, so I can come up with ideas. And
it’s near my pitch. It means a lot. I can sell The Big
Issue when I’m in there too.
I’ve been in Street Art in the mag a couple of
times. It alerted people who see me on my pitch
to the fact I was an artist, I think they were quite
surprised! Now more people are finding out it’s me
I’m selling the odd one – I do display my designs on
my pitch. With this exhibition coming up things are
lookinggood.I’mevengettinga websitetogether.DAVE
MARTIN, 58
More people
are finding
out I’m an
artist – I
display my
designs on
my pitch
THEBIGISSUE
MANIFESTO
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Mon-Sat 12pm-6pmInterview: Alan Woodhouse
Photo: Louise Haywood-SchieferSome art with your mag?
Dave’s work features in the
OurTypes show, see page 20