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About Me Traditional Art / Artist Member Mike ClaptonMale/United Kingdom Recent Activity
Deviant for 5 Years
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Statistics 80 Deviations 148 Comments 8,601 Pageviews

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~clappy-207
Mike Clapton
Artist | Traditional Art
United Kingdom
Hey, I'm Mike, I do art in my spare time (which is a lot of the time now, considering I'm unemployed...). I specialise in photo-realistic portraiture, be it large or small scale. I see my work as a fusion of Caravaggio's dramatic chiaroscuro with Chuck Close's grandeur and mind-blowing detail. Ideally I'm looking to develop my work over the next few years to include some of the darker psychological elements of Francis Bacon through the incorporation of heightened emotion, intensified lighting, and potentially more abstract infusions.

However, I dabble in more than just portraiture and drawing. Abstract hyper-realism is also an interest of mine which I aim to revisit eventually.

Equally able with both pencil and paintbrush, I hope to develop, refine and channel my skills over the next few years.
Interests
Quite a bit has changed since my last entry so I thought I'd give another little update:

Firstly, I have now finished university. It does not seem three years ago that I was nervously first starting my course. A lot of it was great fun, and a lot of it (particularly most of the work) was rather tedious, and at several points I really did wonder why I was doing it. Nevertheless, I stuck with it, and by some miracle, managed to achieve a first class honours degree...from Oxford. Pretty nifty, even if I do say so myself. So there is a lesson: never give up and stick with it, no matter what it is, because it'll be worth it in the end.

As a result of this, I am now unemployed, looking for a job that can fulfill my creative urges yet also provide a decent wage. The advantage of this joblessness is that I can dedicate a lot of time to art. I have dedicated my free time over the last few months to the first of the two murals I have been commissioned to paint. Below is a link to an image of a section which I have completed so far (I am not a premium member, which means I can't put an image in this post annoyingly). Up to this point, around 600 hours have been spent on the piece - it is 3m x 1.3m. It is my Everest. Many deadlines have come and gone. The end of this month is the new completion date which I am now aiming for. Although progress is slow, I feel it will be worthwhile at the end of it.

If anyone knows of any creative/artistic jobs available, please let me know.

All the best.

[link]
  • Mood: Satisfied
  • Listening to: Heart In Hand - Photographs

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:iconkingsstone:
~kingsstone Aug 20, 2011  Student Traditional Artist
Hey! :D I came across 'Condensation' and was blown away! xD Looking through your gallery, all of your work is incredible! :)

I created a new group, where we sell original artwork of any types, and also photography and digital prints, :iconsellers-showcase: . As well as this, we promote artists looking to take commissions :) If you are interested, do join; we would love to see your work in our galleries :D

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Want a professional, in-depth and descriptive critique? Check my profile for more!
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Founder of #Sellers-Showcase - Sell you work now!
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The Harry Potter 'Marauders Map' is FOR SALE here: [link]
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:icontmonart:
*TMonArt Jul 15, 2011  Student Digital Artist
so cool !

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HELLO I'm tourist and I love art.And I love your art.
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:iconjessie-car:
Mood: Love ~jessie-car Mar 15, 2011  Hobbyist Traditional Artist
you are so amazingly talented! wow!!
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:iconflyawaygirl:
~flyawaygirl Jan 7, 2011  Student Photographer
You're amazingly talented, I hope you know that! Beautiful gallery!
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:iconcloistering:
*cloistering May 9, 2010  Professional General Artist
:fusionrock::fusionrock: Thank you so much for your inspiring stock :heart: I used a touch of condensation on Mythic-Invasion [link]
The piece started out as Mythic Visitation, but then things happened and it turned into...
for a mini Nightmare contest ;-)

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... just possibly redemption lies in the lucid beauty of the absurd...;-)
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:iconspanjebob:
~spanjebob Apr 11, 2010  Hobbyist General Artist
Hey you :iconwaggleplz: yes you :iconcoloncapitaldplz: you have been featured here --> :star: [link] :star: :icontongueblush: go and show some love to other features :iconcrosseyedclapplz:

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:star::star::star: :groups: ARE YOU TIRED OF BEING IGNORED? YOU WANNA MORE :+fav: :+devwatch: ???You can get it Here. 100% working ;) :star::star::star:
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:icontatababy:
=tatababy Jan 8, 2010  Hobbyist Digital Artist
Hello random deviant! :iconiloveitmoreplz:
Nice gallery!

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:groups: Join AnimeMangaMuseum!
:groups: Join WWEMuseum!
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:iconj-hicks:
awesome work! Im surprised your not at art school really :D keep up the painting :highfive:

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my website- [link]
Every good painter paints what he is -Jackson Pollock
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:iconriot62:
~Riot62 Aug 24, 2009  Student Traditional Artist
absolutely mind blowing work!
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:iconicebreath91:
Your art is beautiful and inspiring :D
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