The Man Behind The Murals: James Klinge (Class of 2001)

Back in 1990, Glasgow was named ‘European Capital of Culture’ and whilst the city no longer holds the title, its cultural stature continues to grow. One such example is the increasing popularity of ‘Street Art.’ More than ever before, local populations both embrace and celebrate the many breathtaking murals dotted around Glasgow and beyond. But who are the talented individuals responsible? Recently, we caught up with a celebrated Artist we proudly call ‘one of our own,’ James Klinge, class of 2001.

James, tell us about your earliest memories of The Glasgow Academy?

I can remember a good amount from my beginnings at The Glasgow Academy. I started at The Academy in Prep 3 and can still visualise Ms Grant’s classroom, I’d be able to describe it if I were to stand in it now. I remember it well, from the books we read, the pictures on the walls, the layout of the room to meeting the cheeky boys (Westbourne hadn’t merged yet) that I am still friends with to this day. A lot of changes have happened to the school since, but even back then I just remember being overwhelmed by the sheer size of the school. 

Did you enjoy school life?

Yes and no. Those formative years of being a teenager in senior school can be hard to navigate at times, and yes there would be classes I had no attention for, or pupils I wasn’t looking forward to seeing, but there were a lot of laughs and good times throughout the school day. For me, as soon as I saw the A-Level art room when I started 1st Year, I knew straight away that I was going to be in that space and I would patiently wait and look forward to when that day arrived. Sixth year was my best and favourite year in school spending every minute of every day in the art department with the A Level Studio as my base. 

Is there anything you would have done differently?

No I wouldn’t have done anything differently. In all honesty I achieved what I set out to do in terms of the direction I wanted to go. The Glasgow Academy had some of the very best facilities to support a child interested in art (or any creative field) like nothing I’d ever experienced before, and the staff encouraged me tremendously. 

Was there any one teacher who had a particularly positive impact on your time at the school?

There were three. Mr Kim Fraser, he was one of those teachers who had an enthusiasm that was infectious, even if you were not into design, you looked forward to his class. Double periods were the best, frankly you’d be gutted when the bell rang. Mr Jamie McNaught taught me technique and how to draw, how to set up objects for a painting, how to paint, and if I stepped out of line, how to scrub palettes with a brillo pad! And finally of course Mr Adrian de Villiers. He opened my eyes and taught me so much, introducing me to so many amazing artists along the way. His office was an Aladdin’s cave of books that were filled with incredible works of art by amazing artists. I am so thankful to have been a student to these three brilliant teachers – all sound guys as well!

Had you always wanted to be an artist?

100%. Since I was very young there has never been a Plan B or any other path I’ve wanted to go down. I was literally that kid who would be in his room drawing all the time. As a child, being told to go to my room was never a punishment for me because that’s where my pencils and pens and stack of dot matrix paper were located. As I said before, I saw the A-Level Art room at the school and knew right away that I’d be at home in there, and my teachers knew it too. My only focus, was on a life of art. 

Was there any one artist, person or piece of work that inspired you to pursue this career?

One day during Senior 2, Mr de Villiers showed the class the work of Peter Howson and I was immediately blown away. Up until that point my inspiration had been Tony Hart and Neil Buchanan off the TV, but after seeing the work of Howson I was instantly inspired. During my A-Level period he did it again by introducing me to the work of Egon Schiele which was a real game-changer for me. I’d never seen figurative drawings like that before and again, it completely fired me up. 

Things came full-circle a few years ago though. After being introduced to the work of Peter Howson – now one of my all-time favourite artists – all those years ago to one day in 2017 receiving a photograph of him standing in front of one of my paintings giving it two thumbs up. My mind was blown, it was such an honour.

You’ve often described your work as ‘controlled chaos’ – how does an artist like yourself develop their chosen style? Is it a carefully thought out process or more a case of embracing what comes naturally?

I like to manipulate spray paint in a way that you would not think possible in my paintings, to the point that the marks made and thick texture has been mistaken for oil paint. It has taken several years for me to reach a point where I’m happy with how my style has developed. I could see in my mind what I wanted to do, but not until 2016 did I fully accept the expressive qualities and texture in my paintings. It came from a lot of experimenting and practice directly on to the canvas. I don’t really sketch out a painting, as Francis Bacon would say, “a lot of it can be left to chance.” It can be really exciting not knowing what will happen with the next stroke or slash with my palette knife. And it will I’m sure continue to develop in time, if I feel too comfortable in the outcome of regular paintings. 

Where does your present day inspiration come from?

My work is primarily figurative and I continue to be inspired by the greats like Rembrandt, Van Dyke, Howson, Bacon etc. I also take inspiration from the likes of music lyrics to most recently, classic stories. For example, for a previous solo exhibition I produced a body of work influenced specifically by song lyrics referencing ‘love’ and more recently I painted a mural depicting a modern day interpretation of Cleopatra dropping her pearl earring in her glass of wine to seduce Mark Antony. Yet whilst I paint, I have music playing loudly in my studio and that can influence the way I paint as well with regards to my strikes with the palette knife.

Hypothetically, if only one of your creations could last forever – which one would you want it to be?

That is a hard one to answer because I don’t know if I have painted it yet.

How did it feel being asked to work with brands as big as Red Bull and Jagermeister? Whilst I’m sure it’s not why you do what you do, it must be nice?

It is an amazing feeling to have these global brands knock on your door asking to work with you. I built a good relationship with both over a period of time, especially with Red Bull. As well as doing a few projects with them I was able to curate a couple of exhibitions within their London HQ near Tower Bridge. It was such an amazing experience working with a company who were so willing and happy to help make my vision of an exhibition become a reality – nothing was an issue. Equally, Jagermeister gave total artistic freedom in the most supportive way possible. What more could you ask from a client?

Have you ever had any unusual requests from clients that you’re happy to share?

Not really. One of those ‘pinch yourself’ experiences I had was when I was doing some work for a commercial in London for a Grand Master Flash album. I ended up sitting next to him at lunch and had a great conversation about his career and Hip Hop music in general. That felt quite surreal. 

You recently exhibited in The Algarve, how did that come about and how did it go?

It all started in 2019 when a friend in Portugal introduced me to a friend of theirs who had an incredible space out there and they were delighted to offer it to me to produce an exhibition. The pandemic obviously delayed everything, but it all came together in May this year. Given the show was in Portugal and this was my first time exhibiting there, I wanted to find a story to work with that Portuguese viewers knew, and I found and educated myself on the story of Prince Pedro and Ines de Castro. An incredible yet tragic love story from Portugal’s history that I found fascinating and allowed me to create a series of paintings that I’m incredibly proud of. The reaction to the paintings by Portuguese visitors was incredible as they were captivated by the detail and emotion highlighted in my paintings of a story they know so well. As an artist binging these paintings to Portugal I couldn’t have asked for a better reaction to the work.

What’s next for James Klinge?

Next in the diary is a trip to Rotterdam at the start of September to paint a mural for the All Caps Festival. Following that I shall be working on several private commissions and researching and experimenting in the studio for the next paintings. I feel it’s time for me to release a fresh run of limited edition prints as well. Mix all this together with being a husband and father.

And finally, what advice would you give to the current crop of budding young artists studying at The Academy?

Of course enjoy what you are doing and have fun with the excitement of experimenting and trying new techniques. Open that book about that artist, watch that documentary, go to that exhibition, make connections, enter that competition and don’t ever be afraid to put your work out there but be selective. It’s all part of the learning and that is what keeps it exciting and fresh. You can make a career out of this and make a living from it so go for it if it’s what you really want to do.