Nikos Leonidas

I met Nikos Leonidas on Oxford street. He was busking. He told me that he has lived in London for 51 years. He learnt to play the violin at a school for the blind in Cyprus and can be found on Oxford Street 5 days a week entertaining passers by and feeding the pigeons.

He has worked in many jobs but is not motivated by money...

"As I said, life is good. It's up to the person how you make it- you know what I mean?"






(Food for thought: done from a photo...too many fields of separation...has left painting feeling flat/past/dead... will work from sketches with future subjects...can I get them to sit for me?)

New project: Linked

Finding connections between people in London...

How do our surroundings effect who we are? How much in common do we have with strangers? How difficult is it to get someone to tell their story? What choices will I make to structure my narrative (omission/inclusion)? How can I express the many layers of experience?


Interviewing people on the street and painting their portraits... using the stories they tell me to inform where I go next to search out my following subject...

...culminating in an art treasure hunt...

...Hopefully this pilot version will aid me in evolving the idea in time for my project trip to Dominica.


First encounter: Nikos Leonidas...